Impact of a family practice residency program on physician location in small communities.

We conducted a study to determine the practice location pattern among graduates of a family practice residency program with respect to the distribution of the physicians in nonurban areas of the country. One of the primary goals of The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School at Dallas Family Practice Residency Program based in the John Peter Smith Hospital of Fort Worth is to encourage and increase the number of physicians who will eventually locate in rural areas or in small communities. Analysis of the project supports the conclusion that a residency training program does not need to be based geographically in a rural area to achieve an equitable distribution of physicians in nonurban areas.