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'' Over the past 40 years, Rockford and its surrounding communities have benefited from our patient care, support of nearby charitable clinics, attracting specialty and sub-specialty physicians as well as a College of Nursing and Pharmacy, the development of the Rural Medicine Program and by retaining our talented graduates who serve the state of Illinois. LeBaron Paul "L.P." Johnson, MD co-founder of the College of Medicine at Rockford '' PHOTO: LLOYD DEGRANE decades ago, when it was shown that although 20 percent of Illinois resi- dents lived in rural areas, only 9 percent of Illinois physicians practiced in rural areas. Glasser, associate dean for rural health professions who had been with the College of Medicine at Rockford since 1978, along with col- leagues researched other rural medical education programs to determine factors of success. When the program began in 1993, it had four linch- pins: a specific, unique rural medicine-oriented curriculum, admission of students from rural communities, a support system that extended from medical school to residency and through practice, and ongoing evaluations of program participants (at the first and fourth years of medical school, second year of residency and every five years of practice thereafter). Students participate in seminars, field trips and computer-based assignments that focus on rural health care and community-oriented primary care issues and techniques whereby they gain an understand- ing of the unique issues facing rural communities and rural health care delivery. Of the campus' 51 graduates in 2012, 15 completed the RMED program. By all accounts, the program is wildly successful. RMED gradu- ates are 8.5 times more likely than College of Medicine graduates on the whole to practice in a rural area and 9.7 times more likely to practice in primary care shortage areas, according to Glasser, who also says RMED was recently named one of only six programs in the nation that success- fully recruits, places and retains students in rural communities. Glasser says both the integrity of the program and the integrity of the students are due equal credit for the program's success. The students are nurtured, encouraged and mentored. "We have the students sign a pledge when they enter, acknowledg- ing that the purpose of the program is to place them in rural commu- nities. We work with them and support them. We tell them they are meeting the needs of the underserved people of Illinois," he says. And lest one assume RMED students are less competitive than students that go into, say, surgical specialties, Glasser is quick to defend their intellec- tual prowess. "At the time of graduation, RMED students typically win 50 percent or more of senior class awards," he says proudly. "This includes AOA, essay contests, research recognition, community service awards, and family medicine and primary care awards." Validation of the program also occurred from an unlikely source. Princess of Naradhiwas University (PNU) in Thailand has a five-year memorandum of understanding with the College of Medicine at Rock- ford to help it develop physician retention of its rural medicine program in Songkhla, Thailand. PNU reached out to Rockford since medical school graduates were fleeing rural Thailand for Bangkok or overseas. Glasser also serves as co-editor of Education for Health, an in- ternational journal focused on innovative programs to address health professions and community education initiatives globally. He and his colleagues can leverage RMED's success across the world, and he suspects PNU's collaboration, which brings world recognition and prestige to RMED, is just the first of many to come. "Our program is better known in Vietnam, Thailand, Brazil, the Netherlands and countries in Africa, even, than the U.S." he says. RMED has been so successful that Glasser, who says he's old enough to retire, could rest on the laurels of the program. But Rockford is just getting started. "I want to strengthen our integrated pharmacy and rural medicine program … integrate social work with RMED … expand our programming with underserved groups like the Native Americans … bring our success overseas … ," he enthuses. Glasser's wish list represents more than just the end career goals of one teacher. It is a proxy for the deep, ongoing lifelong devotion of the community-based faculty that has made the College of Medicine at Rockford a medical marvel for north-central Illinois. 34 | FALL 2012