The UW School of Medicine and Public Health and the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health (DFMCH) welcomed the SSM Health Monroe Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program under its sponsorship on July 1.
SSM Health Monroe Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program class of 2026 (from left): Richard Nye, DO, Sara Kaczmarek, DO, and John Manuel, DO.
The program will benefit from the support and resources provided by the medical school and DFMCH in its commitment to providing compassionate and comprehensive rural osteopathic primary care training. DFMCH has a longstanding commitment to rural medicine sponsoring the UW Baraboo Rural Training Track and the Rural Health Equity Track. Monroe residents will also have opportunities for rotations at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital and SSM Health Dean Medical Group in Madison.
“The partnership with the University of Wisconsin allows our residents to benefit from educational opportunities offered by a nationally recognized department of family medicine,” shared Lori Rodefeld, medical education manager at SSM Health Monroe Hospital. “Additionally, the ability to rotate alongside UW residents at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison will strengthen their rurally focused training in Monroe.”
The collaboration builds on an almost 80-year relationship with SSM Health Monroe Hospital serving as one of the first rural preceptorship sites for UW medical students. To date the hospital has trained over 1,000 UW medical students and residents.
SSM Health Monroe Hospital’s Family Medicine Residency Program started in 2015 and is the first American Osteopathic Association (AOA) accredited rural training track in the country. The class of 2026 will be the first under the new partnership and includes three residents with shared interests in rural health and access to care. Drs. Sara Kaczmarek and Richard Nye grew up in Wisconsin while John Manuel, DO, brings experience and insight from his life in the Philippines.
“We welcome the opportunity for increased collaboration in furthering our rural health and osteopathic missions and are grateful for continued collaboration with SSM in southern Wisconsin,” added Ildi Martonffy, MD, vice chair of education for UW DFMCH.
Published: September 2023