BayCare Welcomes 31 Residents in Much Needed Specialties

At a time when our nation is facing a shortage of physicians, BayCare is working to grow its own.

Today, 31 residents launch the next chapter of their medical training in four programs offered through the health system, which serves the Tampa Bay and West Central Florida regions. 

Fifteen newly-minted physicians are continuing their graduate medical education  in the fields of pediatrics and psychiatry at St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital in Tampa and Morton Plant North Bay Hospital/North Bay Recovery Center. The programs are the first BayCare Health System ACGME institutional-sponsored programs.  

ACGME is the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, which is the single GME accreditation system for all U.S. residency and fellowship programs.  BayCare received ACGME initial accreditation status in October 2020.

The additional 16 residents are joining previously established family medicine programs affiliated with University of South Florida at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater and Florida State University at Winter Haven Hospital.

This announcement comes as the American Medical Association says the physician shortage is likely to worsen by pandemic-related rates of early retirement and physician burnout. Nearly 45% of active physicians are 55 or older. 

The good news is most residents that matched into BayCare’s programs have ties to Florida.   The data indicate that residents often stay and practice in cities and towns where they are trained, which is BayCare’s fundamental reason for developing these programs.

“We are excited to have this diverse group of enthusiastic young physicians joining our team today,” said Karen Navarra, BayCare’s director of graduate medical education. “We were flooded with applications and chose residents who matched best with our culture and share our commitment to providing extraordinary care for all we serve.” 

For more information about residencies at BayCare, visit Residency Programs at BayCare.