The Future of Medical Education at UCSF Fresno

an interactive and innovative week of education.” The emergency medicine residency in Guatemala is relatively new and will be graduating its first class of residents this year. All these relationships and experiences will be integral in the newly approved global emergency medicine education fellowship that has been approved at UCSF Fresno and will start its first fellow in 2023.

For all specialties, he hopes to add more opportunities and international educational partnerships once travel restrictions ease. A global health library has been created with insightful readings on a variety of global health topics. Regarding travel opportunities, Dr. Ernst says, “I anticipate as the travel restrictions lift that we will have many opportunities to engage in global health activities. One of the most exciting with potential for multispecialty engagement is the FresnoGuadalajara sister city program,” he says. “We have already undergone initial meetings and hope to make an initial trip there soon to explore opportunities for multispecialty exchange and training.”

Keeping up with global disease trends and diverse approaches to health care is crucial in today’s interconnected world, and UCSF Fresno is fortunate to have faculty, residents and staff who have done groundbreaking projects all over the world. They bring their life experiences and clinical expertise to serve the Valley’s diverse population, and the Global Health Curriculum provides a unique, multi-disciplinary forum for practitioners to teach others about their international experiences. As a regional campus of the UCSF School of Medicine in the heart of California, UCSF Fresno’s role is multifold. UCSF Fresno is aligned with UCSF’s commitment to health equity and we extend that commitment to the San Joaquin Valley and Central California. UCSF Fresno facilitates recruitment of outstanding faculty to lead programs at the Fresno campus where we provide high-quality medical education. We are the largest Graduate Medical Education Program adding physicians to the Central Valley each year. In partnering with Community Health System and Central California Faculty Medical Group, we are a major provider of subspecialty care in the region and offer patients exceptional care close to home. The clinical experiences at UCSF Fresno enhance UCSF medical student education. In addition, we provide pathways to increase the diversity and number of students from the Valley who are eligible to go on to medical school and are committed to providing culturally appropriate care here.

Over the coming years, in partnership with UC Merced, we are committed to developing, designing, and launching an independent medical school in the San Joaquin Valley. The next step in realizing that goal is the development of San Joaquin PRIME+, an 8-year BS to MD program launching in 2023 with its first class of 12 students. Provided these students meet the academic performance standards, they will matriculate into the UCSF School of Medicine in 2027. In 2027, the first component of the UCSF Medical School curriculum, Foundations 1, will be delivered on the UC Merced campus. In the interim, our current San Joaquin Valley PRIME will continue to train students and we will graduate the first class in 2023. In order to expand the class size and envision an independent medical school for the Valley, support is needed to develop graduate medical education programs that are appropriate in size to clinical needs; to accommodate growing undergraduate medical education needs; and ensure future residency positions for SJV PRIME students.

Growing medical education, developing a physician workforce that better reflects the diversity of the Valley, improving access to equitable, culturally appropriate care and enriching the economic vitality in the San Joaquin Valley are our priorities now and moving forward.