Publications / Understanding Graduate Medical Education in California

Understanding Graduate Medical Education in California

How State and Federal Funding and Expanded Graduate Medical Education Affect the Physician Workforce

Key Takeaways

  • Graduate medical education – also known as GME – is critical to addressing California’s health workforce shortage and ensuring the physician workforce can meet the health care needs of California today and in the future.
  • Three in four physicians who complete residency training in California remain in the state to practice medicine, and physicians are also more likely to practice medicine near their residency program.
  • While the majority of graduate medical education funding comes from federal sources, state investments in GME are important because state dollars can be used to support the implementation costs of new residency programs, supplement funding for existing programs, and expand programs ineligible for federal support.

California’s population continues to change, age, and rapidly diversify, and the need for a representative, well-trained health care workforce has never been more critical. Graduate medical education — also known as GME — plays a vital role in shaping health care delivery in California.

Over the past decade, California has seen a consistent increase in residency programs across the state, and this growth indicates a concerted effort to expand the physician pipeline. The following reports provide data and a landscape of graduate medical education program expansion, funding, and impact on physician training and distribution across the state.

These two companion reports will help policy, education, and health leaders come together to accomplish these goals:

  • Understand how GME shapes the state’s physician pipeline. Graduate medical education is the final step in physician training, and it’s crucial for developing a robust supply of doctors who will practice in California.
  • Gain clarity on the GME funding system, challenges, and risks. Funding to support graduate medical education is an intricate web of federal, state, and private sources.
  • Explore how GME expansion efforts affect regional disparities. California faces significant physician shortages in specific regions, particularly in the the Inland Empire, San Joaquin Valley, and rural northern California.
  • Assess progress toward state goals to expand residency programs and positions. In 2019, the California Future Health Workforce Commission set ambitious targets for expanding primary care and psychiatry residencies.

By understanding the current landscape of graduate medical education, policy, education, and health leaders can work together to build a stronger, more equitable health care workforce that serves all Californians.

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