The Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) has announced a new funding opportunity for planning rural residencies – the Rural Residency Planning and Development Program (RRPD).

The Federal Office of Rural Health Policy-supported RRPD provides start-up funding to new rural residency programs, including rural track programs, in family medicine, internal medicine, psychiatry, general surgery, preventive medicine, or obstetrics and gynecology organizations to address physician workforce shortages in rural communities. Eligible applicants include rural hospitals, graduate medical education consortiums including universities, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and tribal organizations.

A maximum of 15 awardees will receive up to $750, 000 for a 3-year grant period to develop new, sustainable rural residency programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Research has shown that physicians from a rural background and those trained in rural settings are more likely to continue practicing in rural areas after completing their residencies. The federal RRPD program helps organizations start new rural residencies that have plans to be sustainable over the long-term through viable and stable funding mechanisms such as Medicare, Medicaid, and other public or private funding sources.

Applications must be submitted by Monday, February 12.