Home Careers & Education Graduate Medical Education Graduate Medical Education Programs Family Medicine Rural Training Program
The Samaritan Family Medicine Rural Training Program (RTP) is a community-based, ACGME-accredited, 3 year Early Immersion Rural Training Program located on the beautiful central Oregon coast.
With the first 6 months of foundational training spent at the sponsoring institution before spending 2.5 years in rural Newport, Oregon, this program provides a unique, enhanced and integrated rural training experience in a resource-limited environment. The initial 6 months is spent at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, a level 2 trauma center in Corvallis, Oregon. Residents then transition to Newport halfway through intern year and complete their training at Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital (SPCH), a critical access hospital overlooking the Pacific Ocean and beautiful Yaquina Bay.
To train family medicine physicians centered on the principles of collaboration, compassion, and accountability to improve the health and well-being of rural and underserved communities.
Our program mission closely aligns with the Samaritan Health Services mission of “Building Healthier Communities Together.” This shared mission encourages collaboration to provide patient-centered care in an ever-evolving healthcare environment.
Continuity clinic is operated out of Newport Health Center, a hospital-based, patient-centered medical home with access to behavioral health, clinical pharmacy, care coordination and clinical nursing services. The residency shares clinical space with orthopedic and general surgery, pediatrics, and OB/GYN specialists. Inpatient care is a major part of the curriculum throughout all three years of training.
Residents progress through a structured set of clinical rotations during PGY1–PGY3, gaining broad experience across inpatient, outpatient, and community settings. Longitudinal experiences in PGY2 and PGY3 support continuity, skill development, and increasing clinical independence.
PGY1 emphasizes broad exposure to inpatient and outpatient care across adult medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics, and key outpatient specialties.
PGY2 builds inpatient and acute care experience through the family medicine inpatient service, emergency settings, surgical exposure, and expanded community-based training.
PGY3 focuses on advanced inpatient practice, specialty and systems-based training, and increased elective time to support individualized career goals.
During PGY2 and PGY3, residents participate in longitudinal experiences that emphasize continuity of care, procedural skill development, and outpatient and inpatient practice across diverse patient populations.
Meet the Residents of the Family Medicine Rural Program
Meet Our Faculty & Staff
Resident wellness is an important aspect of our training program. The program offers quarterly wellness half days, bi-annual resident-only retreats, monthly Balint group, peer and faculty mentorship, and an intern orientation block that prepares residents for success on rotations. There are also institutional level benefits for residents including free SamFit gym memberships, access to the Vital WorkLife for Physicians program, Employee Assistance Program for counseling services and free access to mindfulness apps including Headspace.
Pacific Communities Hospital and the Pacific Communities Hospital Foundation are deeply committed to supporting resident success and provide a housing subsidy for residents during their time in Newport. This helps make the transition to coastal living as seamless as possible so residents can focus fully on their training. Residents can use this toward their own housing or they can rent one of the reserved two-bedroom townhomes nearby. As of early 2027, they will also have the option of one-bedroom apartments in a complex being built for the residency across the street from the hospital.
Thank you for your interest in our program. Our mission is simple: To train family medicine physicians committed to collaboration, compassion, and accountability and who will work to improve the health and well-being of rural and underserved communities. We believe that physicians practicing in these communities have an incredible opportunity to make a big impact by improving access to care, strengthening local health systems, and building lasting relationships with the patients they serve.
The central Oregon coast, and Newport in particular, provides a unique setting for training family medicine residents. Newport is not only a beautiful coastal town but also a vibrant and welcoming community. It offers our residents the chance to experience the broad spectrum of family medicine while being part of a close-knit environment where your work truly matters. We believe it is an exceptional place to learn, develop confidence as a physician, and prepare for a career serving communities that rely on dedicated family doctors.
We are proud of the program we are building and of the physicians who choose to train here. If you are passionate about community-focused medicine and making a difference in the places that need it most, we would be honored to have you consider joining us.
Cassie Whittier, MD Program Director
The program is committed to the success of residents, faculty, and staff from all backgrounds. Our holistic approach to recruitment recognizes non-traditional applicants that have unique journeys to medicine or have had to overcome systemic barriers in pursuit of becoming a physician. We seek residents and faculty who show commitment to rural and underserved communities. We equip residents with a wide skillset to care for a spectrum of patient needs including gender affirming care, treatment of opiate and substance use disorders, hepatitis C treatment, full spectrum women’s health, and outreach to uninsured and unhoused populations.
Our program is dedicated to lifelong learning and advocacy to promote health equity for our patients, increased representation in the healthcare workforce and fostering an inclusive environment for ourselves and our patients.
We participate in the ERAS program and the NRMP Match process. To be considered for admission, the following materials are required and must be submitted through ERAS:
Applicants will be notified via email if they are selected for an interview. All interviews will be conducted virtually.
In addition to the items listed above, applicants who completed medical school outside the United States need to have graduated medical school or residency-equivalent clinical training within the past five years and must hold valid certification from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) at the time of application. Exceptions may be considered for applicants with substantial U.S. clinical experience or ongoing clinical training.
Non-U.S. citizens must possess a Permanent Resident Card prior to starting a postgraduate medical education program. Unfortunately, Samaritan does not sponsor H1-B or J1 visas.
The program will review every application that meets our initial selection criteria. In addition, we may also use AI in a supportive role to ensure a thorough review of all submissions we receive. We do not rely on AI as the determining factor to rank or select applicants for interviews.
For questions regarding applications, please email Lisa Ely, Rural Program Coordinator, or call her at 541-574-4987.
Interested in a sub-internship/audition rotation with our program? We offer a four-week rotation for 3rd and 4th year medical students that provides a balanced mix of inpatient and outpatient experiences, giving you the opportunity to work alongside our residents and faculty while gaining a firsthand look at our clinical training, learning environment, and program culture. It’s a great way to explore what our program has to offer while further developing your clinical skills. Learn more about our rotations and how to apply.
When completing your application, please enter Newport Rural Track Family Medicine Residency in the ‘Location’ field.
