Training the Physicians of Tomorrow in Riverside: 67 New Medical Residents Added to Local Graduate Medical Education Program in White Coat Ceremony

Riverside Community Hospital’s Graduate Medical Education (GME) program continues to grow and is now up to 120 medical residents. RCH and UC Riverside School of Medicine (SOM) hosted their third White Coat Ceremony welcoming the incoming medical residency class of 2018 at the Riverside Convention Center on June 25. The inaugural class in 2016 consisted of 25 Internal Medicine residents.

Medical residents are physicians who undergo real world, hands-on practice with patients in a supervised clinical environment. Graduates of residency may begin their medical practice in a community, continue advanced education in a fellowship program, or other specialty training. The White Coat Ceremony is a pivotal event for new resident physicians as they transition from medical school to the next part of their journey to become practicing physicians. Next to a stethoscope, the physician’s white coat is seen as the most recognizable symbol of the medical profession. Family, friends, faculty and administration from Riverside Community Hospital and UC Riverside SOM, celebrated the addition of the new residents joining the Graduate Medical Education program in many different areas. The young physicians are represented in our legacy programs of Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Emergency Medicine, OB/GYN, Transitional Year, Neurology and the newly accredited General Surgery program.

It is the goal of Riverside Community Hospital and UC Riverside SOM to retain many of these graduating residents in the area to serve the Riverside and surrounding communities. “Patient access to high quality medical services is critical for our population and we’re proud to be part of the solution,” remarked Patrick Brilliant, CEO of Riverside Community Hospital. The nationwide shortage of physicians is expected to become worse over time and a 2017 American Medical Association physician deficit report for Riverside and surrounding communities estimates the 2022 median physician shortfall at 575 across all physician disciplines. Training physicians locally in Riverside is fast becoming an answer to a problem that shows no signs of slowing down in the future.

“The explosive growth of our graduate medical education (GME) platform from 25 to 120 resident physicians and the opening of our new 7 story patient care tower has brought continued excitement to the campus,” said Kenneth E. Dozier M.D. and Designated Institutional Official of the GME Program at Riverside Community Hospital. “With the addition of the General Surgery residency program to our campus, the foundation for more efficient and comprehensive surgical care has now been put in place. The continued expansion of our GME programs demonstrates our desire to enhance our mission to improve the overall health of our community.”