Director's Welcome

Paul Aitken, Jr., M.D., MPH

Our program has thrived with the support of Penn State University and The Good Samaritan Hospital. The benefits of being a university sponsored/community based single residency program are impressive. Our program enjoys wonderful academic support from the Penn State’s Department of Family & Community Medicine at the College of Medicine and Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.  Our clinical base is the Good Samaritan Hospital, which strives to provide the best healthcare for the members of the community. Expanded Interventional cardiology services are provided in new operating suites.  We provide a full array of inpatient and outpatient services and enjoy a new state-of-the-art ICU/CCU, Emergency Department and single room Family-Centered Maternity Care. 

Our Vision:  Excellent education in the service, art and science of the medical discipline known as Family Medicine leading to significant improvement in the health care of our community.

Our Mission:  Educate and graduate highly competent and ethical family physicians who become board certified through the progressive development and continuous refinement of an accredited program in Family Medicine residency education.

Our residency has several unique aspects, which distinguish us from other programs.

• Three family practice centers for resident continuity clinics - one in the small city of Lebanon, one in suburban Hershey and one in the rural outskirts of Lebanon County, just 15 minutes from the Good Samaritan Hospital.
• An Electronic Medical Record system utilized at all inpatient and ourpatient sites. 
• A remarkable ratio of faculty to residents (2:1) to best serve the educational needs of our residents.
• A unique Family Support/Medical Home program for children at high risk of adverse health outcomes. Over 2,000 children have been identified, tracked and offered interventions through our offices and with home visits by a dedicated team of physicians, nurses, and social workers.
• Over $750,000 in federal HRSA and private grants awarded the residency in the last several years to:
  • Measurably improve residency education and patient care outcomes for chronic medical conditions
  • Support research in our Family Support/Medical Home project
  • Provide training in Motivational Interviewing for smoking cessation and other health care issues
  • Develop a Universal Screening program of all women 14 and older for Domestic Violence
• An International Health Elective in the Dominican Republic to give residents, students and faculty an opportunity to serve in a different culture with limited resources.  This rotation consists of patient care in a rural clinic, community education on public health related issues and involvement in a public health needs assessment survey.  By partnering with a community in the Dominican Republic our program has increased the tropical and public health education of our residents.
• A Structured and Guided Research Curriculum.
• Technology Support for Resident Education.
• Academic rigor with attention to a balanced lifestyle.
• Excellent American Board of Family Medicine Exam passage rate.
• A Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship Program in State College, PA (click here for more info)
  

Our recent graduates are extraordinarily well trained and have entered academic family medicine fellowships, rural, suburban, military, and National Health Service Corps practices.

Each residency has different strengths and characteristics.  I encourage you to take a close look and consider our residency program in your search for an excellent education in an environment which supports a great way of life.