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Indiana’s health and economic future depend on access. Access to primary care, to preventive services and, most important, to doctors who understand the communities they serve.
For generations, the Indiana University School of Medicine has been the backbone of our state’s physician workforce. According to the Bowen Center for Health Workforce Research and Policy, more than three-quarters of physicians who complete medical school and residency training in Indiana remain here to practice. That kind of retention keeps care local and strengthens the health of our state.
Throughout its history, the IU School of Medicine has expanded intentionally—not only in size, but in reach. Our nine campuses stretch from Gary to Evansville, embedding medical education in the same communities where physicians are most needed. Much of this growth has taken place at our eight regional campuses, where students complete their clinical training alongside community physicians. This distributed model, supported by partnerships with hospitals, local health departments and public health organizations, connects education directly to the realities of health care across Indiana.
That approach works. Graduates who learn medicine in Indiana communities are more likely to remain in those communities, and Indiana continues to have one of the strongest physician retention rates in the country.
Nowhere is that impact more visible than in our focus on rural health. The IU School of Medicine Terre Haute campus has long been a leader through its Rural Medical Education Program, which recruits students from small towns and prepares them to return to serve those communities. Graduates of this program are significantly more likely to enter primary care residencies and to practice in rural areas after completing their training. Building on that success, our northwest campus recently launched an Urban Health Program, focused on the complex needs of underserved populations in Indiana’s larger cities.
Our statewide commitment extends beyond medical school. IU School of Medicine sponsors more than 160 residencies and fellowships in a broad range of specialties across Indiana. Growing the school’s regional presence has been a priority—with internal medicine residencies in Muncie and Evansville, psychiatry in Merrillville and Vincennes, and family medicine in Jasper, Lafayette and Muncie. A transitional-year program in Muncie provides additional training pathways, and two new programs in Bloomington—internal medicine and emergency medicine—will welcome their first residents in 2026.
At the same time, our curriculum has evolved to prepare students for a new era of care delivery. Supported by major grants from the Health Resources and Services Administration, we have launched initiatives such as the Primary Care Reaffirmation for Indiana Medical Education and the Indiana Primary Care Advancement in Clinical Training programs.
These investments are reshaping how medicine is taught by emphasizing community and patient-centered care, along with training in technologies that make care more accessible.
Telemedicine, for example, is now woven through all four years of our curriculum.
We have also built strong relationships with partners across the state, including county health departments, the Indiana Rural Health Association, the Indiana Primary Health Care Association and many others to create new clinical rotations for our students. When future doctors work alongside local county health department workers, they see firsthand the health impact of community-based care. They also see the deep sense of purpose that comes from serving neighbors and families they know by name.
The path to a healthier Indiana runs through every county and township, every clinic and hospital. It runs through our nine campuses and the lives of every student, resident and fellow who chooses to stay and serve. At IU School of Medicine, our mission is simple: Train excellent physicians and keep them here where they are needed most.
Indiana’s future depends on it, and we are proud to help build that future, one doctor and one community at a time.•
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Allen is executive associate dean for educational affairs and professor of clinical medicine, and Choi is senior associate dean for graduate medical education and a professor of clinical surgery at the IU School of Medicine.
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