Bothwell-MU Rural Family Medicine Residency Receives Continued Accreditation

The Bothwell-University of Missouri Rural Family Medicine Residency received continued accreditation following an annual review and site visit by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

Graduate medical education refers to the period of education in a particular specialty (residency) or subspecialty (fellowship) following medical school. ACGME is an independent, nonprofit organization that sets and monitors voluntary professional educational standards essential in preparing physicians to deliver safe, high-quality medical care and oversees the accreditation of residency and fellowship programs in the United States.

Following ACGME’s review, the Bothwell-University of Missouri Rural Family Medicine Residency continues to meet the expectations and follow the policies and procedures set forth by its Next Accreditation System.

Dr. Misty Todd, residency director, has seen the program evolve from its beginning and recognizes the value of an accredited residency for medical school graduates seeking to finish their training.

“ACGME accreditation is paramount in a residency,” she said. “It validates our program meets nationwide standards — both institution-wide as well as program-specific requirements — in terms of the training we are providing to our resident physicians. Only graduates of ACGME-accredited residencies are allowed to sit for board certification, which is an essential opportunity in the career of a physician, and we want to ensure to provide that for our graduates.”

The residency started in 2019 after the University of Missouri received a federal grant and selected Bothwell Regional Health Center as the first in the state to implement a rural family medicine residency to train new physicians. Currently, there are four family medicine resident physicians who care for Bothwell patients while they complete the three-year residency required for family medicine physicians.

Dr. ShiAnne Farris and Dr. Logan Stiens are in their first year and split their time between Sedalia and Columbia. Dr. Levi Harris and Dr. Brittany Pendergraft are second-year residents and reside full-time in Sedalia. They care for patients at Bothwell Family Medicine Associates and in the hospital and fulfill rotations in emergency medicine, cardiology, pediatrics, OB/GYN and electives under the supervision of members of the Bothwell medical team who are also program faculty.

Two additional resident physicians will be identified in March 2024.