Midland College receives $100K from Midland County for medical school fast trackMay 31, 2018

Midland College's Primary Care Pathways program is an innovative accelerated education program is designed to enable students to earn a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree. Recently, the college received $100,000 from Midland County.

The basic structure of the program is as follows:

• Two years of full-time study at Midland College

• One year of full-time study at the University of North Texas (UNT) in Denton

• Four years of study at UNT Health Science Center – Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine

According to Dr. Margaret Wade, Midland College dean of Mathematics & Science, the funds received from Midland County will be used to provide resources for the co-curricular and academic needs of students.

“The program provides scholarships, tutoring and mentoring services for students in this accelerated program,” said Wade. “We also provide shadowing experiences and field trips so that our students can have ‘real life’ exposure to the medical field.”

“This program will benefit us all by growing our own physicians,” said Mike Bradford, Midland County Judge.

In addition to the academic curriculum, students will complete two summer experiences. The first summer will be a clinically oriented program at MMH. The second summer program will be a medical sciences-related program at UNT Health Science Center.

“The program is a ‘win-win’ for everyone, especially for our students,” said MC President Dr. Steve Thomas. “I thank Judge Mike Bradford and Midland County Commissioners for providing resources to enable Midland College to offer a pathway for aspiring physicians in our community so they can come home to Midland to practice medicine.”

Students who successfully complete the DO degree and residency training will become licensed physicians who can help alleviate shortage of medical professionals in Midland County.

“In recruiting physicians to Midland, we have always had the greatest likelihood of success with young people who have connections to our community,” said Russell Meyers, Midland Health CEO. “By creating a pathway for aspiring physicians who need to begin their education at Midland College, we increase our chances of bringing them home to practice in the future.”