Overview

The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix is entering a pivotal phase in its evolution as a first-tier academic medical center.

The medical school completed the final steps toward and received independent accreditation, and the relationship with clinical partner Banner Health continues to take shape. This is truly a time of unlimited potential. The Department of Family, Community and Preventive Medicine (FCPM) embraces this auspicious atmosphere for progress across its teaching, scholarly and clinical missions.

The FCPM clerkship enjoys consistently strong ratings from third-year medical students, and there are ongoing efforts to optimize small group didactic teaching and patient care experiences across multiple excellent clinical teaching sites. Department faculty members are exploring new Evidence-Based Medicine modules, using a flipped classroom approach to help students apply the most relevant, high value information to the care of patients. A new Primary Care Scholars Program is being pursued that will help attract and support students interested in General Internal Medicine, General Pediatrics and Family Medicine. This program should improve the generalist culture within the college and address the critical issue of Primary Care workforce and Access to Care in Arizona.

The UA College of Medicine – Phoenix Family Medicine Residency (formerly sponsored by Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix) has graduated over 300 family doctors during its 47-year history. Many of the graduates practice in the Greater Phoenix area, as well as throughout Arizona, helping to address the critical primary care shortage facing our state. The program consistently attracts top applicants from across the country.

The Center for Primary Care at Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix provides a forum for exploring innovative approaches to health care delivery based upon the principles of first contact care, continuity, comprehensiveness and coordination. The Center is developing and evaluating programs to better integrate care between generalist, subspecialty and behavioral providers. Interdisciplinary, team-based models are being tested to refine acute, chronic and preventive care with the goal of improved population level outcomes, lower costs and better patient/provider experience — the components of “The Quadruple Aim.”