UNION, Mo. – In June, 19 students, including nine from across the University of Missouri System, trekked to Union, Mo., for the latest Rural Immersion program. The program is a collaboration of MU Extension, the MU School of Medicine and leadership in the host cities. The goal of the program is to give health professional students the opportunity to envision whether living and working in a rural community might be right for them.

Five School of Medicine representatives and students in disciplines such as dental, dietetics, pre-optometry and physical therapy gained hands-on experience in rural health.

Located 50 miles southwest of St. Louis, Union and its population of 12,000 offered a comprehensive rural community experience. Elizabeth Page Hammer, M.D., from Union’s Mercy Hospital, opened the weeklong program with a keynote address on the importance of rural health care providers and their roles in the community beyond being physicians.

Students toured local health care facilities, and attended presentations and panel discussions featuring local health care providers, government officials and community leaders. Discussion topics included community crisis management, factors that affect the health of rural populations and initiatives to address rural health disparities.

Students also had opportunities to explore the city and get a better feel of what a rural community offers outside the workplace. Evening activities included trips to the Union Historical Society, Meramec Caverns and the downtown strip.

Two first-year MU School of Medicine students, set to begin in fall 2024, Gillian Hark and Cole Yager, attended the recent Rural Immersion trip to Union. They are also members of The Lester R. Bryant Scholars Pre-Admissions Program, which encourages prospective students from rural backgrounds to pursue a medical education.

For Hark and many of her peers, meeting from local health care and business leaders was an invaluable experience.

“We were able to talk to administrators and staff from the local Mercy Hospital about the various resources and services available in Franklin County to combat some of the issues that have been impacting their community the most,” said Hark. “It was great to not only learn about their health care system, but also how their programs are integrated into the county’s education system and businesses.”

There were interesting takeaways each day as Yager and the rest of the Rural Immersion participants explored the community.

“I applied to this program to learn more about rural areas and become more familiar with them,” said Yager. “Throughout the week in Union, all of the health care workers and business leaders we met were so easy to talk to, and you could see the appreciation for their local community. Overall, this was an incredible experience, and I’m so fortunate that MU provides real-life opportunities like this.”

Another Rural Immersion attendee, Corder Lehenbauer, is set to earn his bachelor’s degree from MU in December 2024 and begin medical school in fall 2025. Traveling to a rural community and seeing firsthand what a career in rural health care could be like was something he couldn’t pass up.

“This opportunity showed each of us all of the aspects of a thriving rural community, including health care facilities, businesses, history and governance,” said Lehenbauer. “A line I took away from our guest speakers and panel discussions was ‘the growth and survival of a rural community is only as good as the health of its people,’ and that was something I observed throughout our trip. It would be a privilege one day to work in a rural community, and this opportunity was truly a fruitful experience.”

Story originally posted by the MU School of Medicine.