UW Department of Ob-Gyn receives HRSA grant to expand rural residency

The University of Wisconsin Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Rural Residency Track, the first-ever ob-gyn residency track in the nation to support rural-specific training, received a $750,000 grant from the  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The grant is part of an $11 million investment in rural residency programs by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra announced the grant on June 13, 2024.

The three-year grant will support the development of a new OB-GYN Rural Track Program in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics (UW Health) and the Marshfield Clinic Health System (MCHS) in Wood County. Future residents in the program would spend the beginning of their residency training in Madison and finish with more than two years in Marshfield, building skills in obstetrics, gynecologic surgery, and ambulatory medicine as they care for rural underserved patients and become comfortable providing this care in a rural community.

Ryan Spencer, MD, MS, associate professor in the Division of Gynecologic Oncology and director of the rural residency track, led the application for this new grant, which scored a perfect 100 out of a possible 100.

The grant received media attention in the week since its announcement. Learn more about it on these stories:

New federal grant sends more ob-gyns to train in rural areas – Wisconsin Public Radio

UW receives federal grant to expand OB-GYN rural residency program – WBAY Green Bay

UW OBGYN rural track program receives $750,000 in funding – WKOW

Biden-Harris Administration Invests $11 Million to Expand Medical Residencies in Rural Communities – HRSA Press Release