ATHENS—The Internal Medicine Residency Program, a joint effort of the Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership and St. Mary’s Health Care System, this summer welcomed its second group of medical residents.

The 10 residents are in the final phase of their medical education. Each completed medical school and now begins a three-year medical residency that will include progressively independent patient care under the supervision of physician faculty. The residents provide care at St. Mary’s and other locations.

St. Mary’s President and CEO Don McKenna said, “It’s an honor to be an integral part of the process of educating the next generation of physicians so that they can provide quality care. We are thrilled that we can provide this unprecedented opportunity to bring new physicians to our region.”

Nine of the 10 residents have ties to the state, from being born in Georgia to having served in the armed forces in the state. One is a graduate of the University of Georgia, two earned their medical degrees from Georgia universities, and three others completed medical clerkships in the state.

The AU/UGA Medical Partnership is a collaborative effort between Augusta University and the University of Georgia and is addressing the critical shortage of physicians in the state.

The program has been successful in matching all 10 of its openings for residents in each of its first two years of existence. The match system requires graduating medical students to apply to residency programs that interest them, the programs to select students to interview and both the student and the program to select each other for a match to occur. This year the program received 1,848 applications and conducted 111 in-person interviews before filling the 10 openings.

St. Mary’s Health Care System, a not-for-profit Catholic healthcare ministry, is a member of Trinity Health, Inc. St. Mary’s includes St. Mary’s Hospital in Athens, St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro, St. Mary’s Sacred Heart Hospital in Lavonia, and affiliated facilities.