CANYON COUNTY, Idaho — It was a warm and welcome surprise for Nampa family medicine physician Dr. Amanda Aman to find her name listed among the 16 chosen doctors for the Idaho Rural Physician Incentive Program (RPIP).
"Medical school is not cheap, no," Dr. Aman said. "This is very significant."
Idaho created RPIP in 2013 to incentivize rural-based doctors to stay in their current communities and continue their practice. The Gem State has 64 doctors for every 100,000 people, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (IDHW). That's roughly a third below the national average of 94 doctors per 100,000 people.
RPIP pays off $25,000 of student loans annually for every awardee chosen; the program maxes out at four years for a total of $100,000.
The most used indicator of where a doctor will practice professionally is based on where that doctor completes residency, according to Full Circle Health. Idaho is creating more residency programs to start young professional careers in Idaho; however, keeping those professionals is the second half of the equation.
"You have to really like what you're doing not only from a time management might be in school for 10 years, but also taking on that loan burden, which is the reality for most students," Dr. Aman said. "And you see a lot of physicians leaving providers in general leaving rural areas just because they're getting older and maybe they're not working anymore, maybe they're not able to maintain their practice."
The program has measurable success, according to IDHW:
- 75% of physicians completed RPIP and were retained by their employer at least 1 year after.
- 91% of physicians who completed RPIP continue to work in an Idaho Health Professional Shortage Area.
- 83% of those who ever participated in RPIP are still in Idaho.
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