The Physician Shortage Area Program (PSAP) is an admissions and educational program designed to increase the supply and retention of physicians in rural areas and small towns, with a focus on Primary Care doctors for Pennsylvania and Delaware. The Program recruits, trains and supports medical students who have grown up or spent a substantial part of their lives in a rural area or small town in the United States and intend to practice in a similar area after residency training. Primary care disciplines continue to be the areas of greatest need, but those contemplating other specialties will also be considered for the PSAP.

The UUP began in 2001 with support from a Health Services Research Administration (HRSA) Primary Care training grant. The UUP program is designed to mentor cohorts of students who have identified an interest in a primary care career along with a desire to work with urban underserved populations starting during their first year of medical school. The UUP’s goals and objectives were lightly modeled after the Jefferson Physician Shortage Area Program, a nationally recognized program intended to increase the rural underserved physician workforce. Students are selected via a competitive application. UUP program participants are provided faculty mentors from various disciplines (primarily family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics), and these mentors meet with students as a group and individually to review academic progress, service activities, and career goals. The UUP longitudinal curriculum includes a series of monthly events, seminars, and journal clubs. In addition, there are periodic peer advising sessions that allow students to learn from their more senior UUP participants about transitions in training, preparing for clinical rotations, and choosing and interviewing for residencies focused on urban underserved populations. 

The Peter Amadio Jr. Family Medicine Interest Group is a student run organization at SKMC helps expose students to the specialty of Family Medicine.  The group regularly hosts events such as residency information sessions, speakers, and community service opportunities all focused on topics within family medicine.  Email FMIG@jefferson.edu to be added to the list.

JeffHOPE (Health Opportunities, Prevention & Education) is a student-run organization of Sidney Kimmel Medical College that aims to improve access to health care for the homeless and underserved population of Philadelphia, as well as to educate students, residents, and faculty members about medical issues, homelessness and poverty. It was formed in 1991 by a group of medical students who identified a need in the homeless community for proper medical care.

Bridging the Gaps (BTG) is an interdisciplinary service learning program for health professions students, administered in Philadelphia by the Bridging the Gaps Consortium comprised of representatives from Drexel University, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Temple University, Thomas Jefferson University and the University of Pennsylvania.

Students are paid to engage in a service opportunity, such as: camps, homeless shelters, senior programs and a variety of other populations at various locations across Philadelphia.

For more information, e-mail Zoe Van Orsdol.

Our department has a robust Research division, which focuses on comprehensive, population and evidence-based care, particularly prevention and chronic disease management.  Our work also includes educational research geared toward preparing learners and trainees to improve the health of diverse communities and underserved populations. 

For any Jefferson students interested in participating in research in the Department of Family & Community Medicine, please see the research department's website and complete the DFCM Research Interest Form.