After much planning, preparation and hard work, Samaritan Health Services (SHS) welcomed its second class of resident physicians on June 21.

With the addition of 18 new residents, there are now a total of 27 residents: four in family practice, eight in internal medicine, three in orthopedic surgery, eight in psychiatry and six in a traditional rotating internship. The residents are coming to SHS from all over the country – Michigan, Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, Texas and right here in Oregon.

While at SHS, the residents will adhere to curricula developed by the American Osteopathic Association and its specialty colleges. The curricula have been carefully reviewed by Samaritan’s program directors and graduate medical education committee and then modified to meet the needs of our communities.

Residents will rotate through month-long clinical experiences in areas such as the hospitalist program, psychiatry, surgery, obstetrics and pediatrics – all dependent on the specialty of medicine they are studying. In addition to the clinical experiences, residents will participate daily in structured didactics – a program that includes morning report, grand rounds, morbidity and mortality conference, board review and journal club.
The new residents are:
• Specializing in family practice: Robin Page-Echols, DO, and Tobin Rummel, DO.
• Specializing in internal medicine: Brian Fields, DO; Brandon Markus, DO;  Andrea Marshall, DO; and Kenna Wood, DO.
• Specializing in orthopedic surgery: Seth Criner, DO; Brian Hodges, DO; and Erik Natkin, DO.
• Specializing in psychiatry: Jennifer Lindley, DO; Sabrina Noel, DO; and Kolby Walker, DO.
• Participating in a traditional rotating internship prior to a specialty residency: Larry Buglino, DO; Christopher Carey, DO; Matthew Hiesterman, DO; Cory Maughan, DO; Stephanie Morbeck, DO; and Nathan Swain, DO.

The addition of Samaritan’s second class of residents marks just another step SHS is taking to increase its commitment to medical education. Resident training brings an exceptional value to our medical community and it is anticipated that many residents will remain in the area following their training — helping SHS provide more access, expertise and quality health care to our communities.