SGMC heralds ‘Match Day’ for internal medicine residents

Published 10:00 am Thursday, March 24, 2022

VALDOSTA – South Georgia Medical Center has announced that eight physicians specializing in internal medicine will join the health system beginning July 1 as a part of the inaugural class of its residency program.

In partnership with Mercer University School of Medicine, SGMC launched the program with approval from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education in 2021, hospital officials said in a statement.

SGMC received more than 2,000 applications for the program and conducted 103 interviews. Match Day, as it is known in the medical community, occurred March 18, when soon-to-be physicians learned the hospital where they will be training. Eight medical school graduates ultimately matched with SGMC and will begin their three-year residency training in South Georgia.

“It is a testament to the growth and excitement surrounding SGMC that we filled all eight of our residency positions in the first year of our program,” said Dr. Gregory Beale, SGMC residency program director. “We are thrilled to welcome these residents to SGMC and our community.”

Residents are doctors who have completed medical school, have earned a degree such as M.D. or D.O. and practice under the direct supervision of an “attending” or senior physician. Physicians complete residencies so they can specialize and become board certified or board eligible in a particular field, hospital officials said.

Research shows that medical residents tend to stay close to their training site to work after they graduate. The residency program is intended to enhance recruitment and retention efforts at SGMC.

“Our goal is to train medical students to serve our rural and underserved communities and increase the likelihood they will remain right here in South Georgia,” said Dr. Brian Dawson, SGMC chief medical officer.

Outside of the hospital, the internal medicine residency program will operate a continuity clinic. This allows residents the opportunity to learn how to manage both common and complicated outpatient conditions and to follow patients over time.

SGMC’s inaugural class of internal medicine residents includes Rija Chaudhary, M.D., Venkata Gandi, M.D., Priyanka Kalan, M.D., Monica Kovuri, M.D., Dwayne Mohan, M.D., Anum Munir, M.D., Shilpa Reddy, M.D., Rosaida Silverio-Lopez, M.D.