The medical school presents many challenges, but many students find getting accepted to a residency program just as tricky. The process can vary across different programs, so students need to know more about a specific program before applying.
At Saint James School of Medicine, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Dr. Gonzales and Dr. Nguyen from the Rush Experiaza Residency Program in Chicago. Dr. Gonzales is a resident at Rush Esperanza Family Medicine Residency Program, while Dr. Nguyen is part of the program's core faculty.
Below, we explore what students should know about the Rush Esperanza Family Medicine Residency Program.
A Brief Overview of the Rush Esperanza Family Medicine Residency Program
The Rush Esperanza Family Medicine Residency Program is relatively new, and its founders established it earlier this year. One aspect that stood out to Dr. Gonzales when she applied was how community-based the program appeared. As a teaching health center program, the residency initiative has specific training programs that train physicians to work in various primary care settings. This aspect sets the residency program apart from hospital-based programs. Esperanza Program is also federally funded and allows residencies to work with underserved populations and areas. The program requires participants to treat patients regardless of their ability to pay. Another program goal is to train family medicine physicians in these underserved communities. With this approach, physicians in these areas can broaden their services and provide better care. In particular, this program serves a large Latino population throughout Chicagoland. With these goals in mind, developers created the Rush Esperanza program's curriculum.Ways Esperanza Group Differs From Other Large Hospitals
Compared to other large hospitals, Esperanza Group is currently seeing significantly higher patient volumes than similarly sized hospitals in Chicago. Various reasons may explain this, but with Esperanza Group being mission-based, it benefits from the following:-
- Medical assistants, nurses, and healthcare providers come from the community.
- Staff that isn't from the community are big proponents of the mission.
- Many Spanish-speaking patients struggle with the language barrier. However, at Esperanza Group, many physicians and staff speak Spanish.
- Patients feel more at ease and at home since the hospital is community-based.