WWAMI program expanding its medical, dental programs

Washington State University, the University of Washington and Eastern Washington University held a joint press conference this morning announcing plans to expand medical and dental education programs in the Spokane region. The conference was held at WSU Spokane’s Health Sciences Building on the Riverpoint campus.

The expansion will come through the WWAMI program, which encompasses programs in Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. 

The aim is to add a cohort of about 20 medical students who will conduct their first year of study at WSU Spokane — similar to those who do their first year of studies at WSU Pullman, University of Idaho, University of Alaska in Anchorage,  Montana State University in Bozeman and the University of Wyoming in Laramie.

WWAMI also plans to add a Spokane component to the UW’s Regional Initiative in Dental Education (RIDE) program, which would work coordination with EWU’s dental hygiene program.

First funding increase in decades

If funded by the state legislature, this would be the first increase in several decades in the number of Washington state residents admitted to the UW medical school and dental school. A budget request for WWAMI and the Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE) expansion is a key element in the legislative priorities for 2007 adopted by WSU, UW, and the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce. Eastern’s board of trustees will consider their legislative agenda in their August meeting.

WSU President V. Lane Rawlins noted that establishing a first-year medical/dental faculty in Spokane would have the added benefit of fostering biomedical research activities through collaborative projects with WSU Spokane life sciences faculty. WSU has recognized “faculty in the health and life sciences who will work closely with these new faculty members to expand our growing portfolio of competitively funded research while we also increase the number of medical students taught at WSU.” 

Eastern Washington University President Rodolfo Arévalo lauded the cooperative nature of the proposal. “This partnership further connects the shared WSU/EWU campus to the community through health-related education and research,” Arévalo said. EWU offers allied health programs in physical therapy, occupational therapy, dental hygiene and communication disorders (a joint graduate program with WSU) at Riverpoint.

“The expansion of the WWAMI program in Spokane will build on this strong medical and educational foundation,” said UW President Mark Emmert. “We are able to add dental students to the mix because of the academic strength of EWU and WSU and the support of local dentists.”

“We have an abundance of students from Washington who apply to the University of Washington School of Medicine but there isn’t space for them,” said Dr. Deborah Harper, UW School of Medicine Assistant Dean & WWAMI Clinical Coordinator for Eastern Washington. “Yet there is a current shortage of physicians in our area which will be worsening soon. This is a great opportunity to provide quality medical education for Washington students and to increase the number of physicians. Additionally, this will bring different pieces of the health care system together.

WWAMI History

The WWAMI program was begun in 1972. In 1996, Wyoming joined Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho as the fifth state in the consortium. The WWAMI acronym is derived from the first letter in each state’s name.

The program is based on the premise that medical students need to learn medicine where it is practiced — in the community rather than only in an urban, academic hospital setting. WWAMI puts an emphasis on decentralizing the traditional form of medical education.

The UW Medicine School of Medicine maintains a Dean’s Office in each of the five states. These offices oversee clinical medical education for the School of Medicine within their regions, providing support services for the local clerkships and students rotating among them. WWAMI focuses not only on medical students but on students in K-12, college students, medical school graduates in residency and physicians in community practice.

How WWAMI works

Each of the participating states designates a specific number of medical school seats.  These are supported through a combination of appropriated state funds and student tuition which cover the full cost of medical education.  The tuition paid by students in Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho is the same as that paid by Washington state residents.  This allows for publicly supported medical education in states where no freestanding medical school exists. 

Outcomes of the program at the UW School of Medicine and WWAMI indicate that, over 30 years, 61 percent of graduating students stay within the five-state area to practice. During the past 20 years, about 50 percent of graduating students have pursued careers in primary care.  This is particularly important since 35 percent of the population in the WWAMI region lives in rural, generally underserved areas underscoring the importance of primary care.

The University of Washington School of Medicine has been identified as the top primary care school in each of the last 13 years by U.S. News & World Report.

For additional informationon WWAMI, try to following websites: 

Overview of WWAMI program:
* www.wwami.wsu.edu/overview.html
* www.uwmedicine.org/Education/WWAMI
* www.uwmedicine.org/Education/WWAMI/RegionalOffices/Eastern+Washington.htm

U-Doc Program, designed for juniors and seniors in high school considering various careers in the health science field:
* www.wwami.wsu.edu/udoc/index.htm