Annual report fiscal year 2023 / Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce.

GEORGIA BOARD OF HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE ANNUAL REPORT
FISCAL YEAR
20

23

2 Martin Luther King Jr Drive SE, East Tower, 11th Floor Atlanta, Georgia, 30334 Main : (404) 232- 7972
GBHCW@dch.ga.gov

www.healthcareworkforce.georgia.gov/ Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce

2023 Annual Report

Table of Contents

Table Of
Contents

Message from Executive Director

3

About the Board

4-5

Notable Achievements

6

Fiscal Overview

7-9

Undergraduate Medical Education

10

Mercer School of Medicine Operating Grant Morehouse School of Medicine Operating Grant
Graduate Medical Education
Physicians for Rural Areas Outlook for FY 2024

11 12 13-15 16-17 18

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2023 Annual Report

Message from Executive Director

Message from our
Executive Director

The Board members and staff are pleased to present the 2023 Annual Report of the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce.

Among this year's highlights, most notably would be updating the GBHCW's online data visualization tool with newer data to more accurately display the supply and distribution of Georgia's actively practicing healthcare workforce, which includes physicians, physician assistants, and nurses.

In this annual report, it is my great pleasure to recognize the hard work of the Board members as well as the members of the Board's advisory committees. These men and women work tirelessly and without compensation to fulfill our mission. Their contribution of time represents no small sacrifice, and our state is fortunate to have these individuals as public servants. I must also thank the dedicated staff of the Board, who are determined to give excellent service to their fellow citizens. I am honored and humbled to serve with this group of committed individuals.

Would you or someone you know want to know more about the GBHCW and the important work

we do to improve the health care needs of rural Georgia? Then, please visit us online at https://healthcareworkforce.georgia.gov/. The website is an invaluable resource for both health

care professionals and interested consumers.
Chet Bhasin
Chet Bhasin, FACHE Executive Director

Staff

Augustine Agbontaen Data Analyst
Chet Bhasin Executive Director
Anita Dunbar Office Coordinator
Leanna Greenwood, MA Data Team Supervisor

Alexandria Moses Communication Coordinator
Kimberly Rogers Finance and Budget Administrative Assistant
Yvette Speight Contracts Administrator
Cherri Tucker Consultant

Page 3

2023 Annual Report

About the Board

The Georgia Board of
Health Care Workforce
The Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce (GBHCW) works to see Georgia communities, especially in medically underserved areas, have improved access to needed physicians and other health care practitioners, thereby enhancing the health and well-being of Georgia's citizens. It fulfills this vision by identifying and meeting the health care workforce needs of Georgia communities through the support and
development of medical education programs.
The GBHCW is administratively attached to the Georgia Department of Community Health. The Board meets quarterly to address the challenges presented above. Meetings times and location may vary. Agendas, minutes, and additional meeting information can be found on the Board's website.
Originally started in 1978 as the Joint Board of Family Practice, the Board changed its name to the Georgia Board for Physician Workforce in 1999. In 2011, the powers and
duties of the State Medical Education Board were transferred to the GBPW. Loan repayment programs for dentists were added to the Board in 2016, and programs for
physician assistants (PA) and advanced practice registered nurses (APRN) were officially added under the Board's jurisdiction in 2017. To reflect its more inclusive nature of health care professions, the Board's name changed to the Georgia Board
of Health Care Workforce in 2019.

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2023 Annual Report

Board Members

Our Dedicated
Board members

The Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce is comprised of 15 members appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the State Senate. The Board consists of ten physicians, one dentist, one physician assistant, one advanced practice registered nurse, one hospital/health system executive and one consumer member.

James Barber, M.D. Chair
Coffee County

William R. Kemp Vice Chair
Lowndes County

Lily Jung Henson, M.D. Secretary/ Treasurer Greene County

Kitty Carter-Wicker, M.D. Fulton County

Amy Reeves, PA-C Cobb County

Carolyn Clevenger, DNP Gwinnett County

Terri McFadden-Garden, M.D. Steven Gautney, MSHA

Fulton County

Crisp County

Joseph L. Walker, M.D. Seminole County

William Fricks, M.D. Coweta County

Michael J. Groover, D.M.D. Indran Indrakrishnan, M.D.

Chatham County

Gwinnett County

Garrett Bennett M.D. Early County

W. Scott Bohlke M.D. Bulloch County

James Lofton Smith, Jr., M.D. Gwinnett County

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2023 Annual Report

Accomplishments 2023

Notable
Accomplishments
Operations
The Board held four quarterly board meetings to discuss board business and other healthcare workforce matters. One meeting took place at Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Onsite meetings provide valuable insights into context of each institution. The remaining three meetings were virtual.
Office moved from 2 Peachtree Street to Twin Towers across the street from the State Capitol.
Loan Repayment Programs / Grants
All four loan repayment programs (Physician, Dentists, Physician Assistants, and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses) improved access to care for Georgia residents in 45 rural counties.
$6.5 million dollars was added to the Board's budget to offer competitive grant for nursing schools that have a waitlist to aid nursing program expansion, benefitting 17 Nursing Programs in Georgia.
The Advanced Practice Registered Nurses Loan Repayment Program awarded contracts to 44 recipients, doubling the number compared to fiscal year 2022.
Data
The Data Team continues to survey and publish reports that are relevant to multiple stakeholders including a Georgia Physician Assistant Workforce Report, Match Report of Georgia Medical School Graduates, and Graduate Medical Education Exit Survey Report.
Continues to update data visualization page on the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce website in partnership with the Georgia Data Analytic Center.
Concerted efforts are being made to have Behavioral Health Care Workforce data accessible online, which will be available in early/mid 2024.
The Medical School Graduate Survey Report has been updated and expanded on factors influencing medical school graduates choice in medical specialties and the selection of residency locations. Medical schools surveyed include Emory, MCG, Mercer, Morehouse, and PCOM (Georgia Campus).

Page 6

2023 Annual Report

Fiscal Overview

Financial
Summary 2023

Page 7

2023 Annual Report

Fiscal Overview

Appropriated Funds
in 2023
The GBHCW operates with a budget appropriated by the General Assembly. All state funding for medical education, with the except of money appropriated through the Board of Regents, is administered by GBHCW.
In fiscal year 2023, the Board's appropriated budget was $108,813,396 which is used to enhance the health and well-being of Georgia's citizens through various medical education and health care workforce programming.
The Board's budget includes six programs: Administration Graduate Medical Education Mercer School of Medicine Grant Morehouse School of Medicine Grant Physicians for Rural Areas Assistance Undergraduate Medical Education

Appropriation Figure Breakdown

GBHCW Programs
Administration Graduate Medical Education Undergraduate Medical Education Mercer S.O.M. Operating Grant Morehouse S.O.M. Operating Grant Physicians For Rural Areas
Total

FY 2023 $1,478,652 $30,532,048 $7,195,783 $31,265,438 $32,307,713 $2,150,000 $104,929,634

AFY 2023 $1,478,652 $30,770,014 $10,751,783 $31,265,438 $32,307,713 $2,239,796 $108,813,396

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2023 Annual Report

Fiscal Overview

Fiscal year 2023
Appropriation figure

Graduate Medical Education (GME) Undergraduate Medical Education Morehouse S.O.M. Operating grant

Administration Mercer S.O.M. Operating Grant Physicians for Rural Areas

Physicians for Rural Areas $2,239,796

Morehouse S.O.M. Operating Grant $32,307,713

Graduate Medical Education (GME) $30,770,014

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Mercer S.O.M. Operating Grant $31,265,438

Administration $1,478,652
Undergraduate Medical Education $10,751,783

2023 Annual Report

Undergraduate Medical Education

Undergraduate Medical
Education

State funding for undergraduate medical education plays a crucial role in securing a sufficient pool of primary care and essential physician specialists, facilitated through collaborative partnerships with four private medical schools in Georgia.

The Medical Student Capitation Program provides funding to Emory University School of Medicine, Mercer University School of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine for a designated number of Georgia residents enrolled in each medical school. The level of funding is determined by the General Assembly, and in FY 2023, the funding for up to 569 students (Mercer 210; Emory 113; Morehouse 96; and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine 150). The capitation rate was $6,363 per student certified as a resident of Georgia, which is a similar payment rate from the previous fiscal years. The contracts stipulate that at least 50 percent of the medical schools' graduates must enter a primary care or core specialty. Over the past five years, the rate of graduates entering primary care and core specialties for the participating schools combined was 73.3 percent.

The GBHCW considers seven specialties as "primary care and core specialties," which include: family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, emergency medicine, general surgery and psychiatry.

$6,363 73.3%

Capitation rate

Rate of graduates entering primary care or core specialties

Grads entering Core Specialties / Total Grads Entering Residency

Emory Mercer Morehouse PCOM Totals Total %

FY 2018 82/143 74/102 59/76 95/122 310/443 69.97%

FY 2019 90/123 81/108 55/73 91/122 317/426 74.41%

FY 2020 98/139 86/114 69/87 104/120 357/460 77.60%

FY 2021 78/122 106/126 64/79 97/129 345/456 75.65%

FY 2022 87/149 79/107 62/84 90/121 318/461 68.98%

FY 2023 85/125 107/130 60/87 116/160 368/502 73.30%

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2023 Annual Report

Mercer SOM Operating Grant

Mercer SOM
Operating Grant

The purpose of the Mercer University School of Medicine Operating Grant is to educate physicians and health professionals to meet the primary care and health care needs of rural and medically underserved areas of Georgia.

With 557 total students (all students are Georgia residents), Mercer University School of Medicine is spread over three campuses in Georgia:

Macon, which houses the school's traditional campus; Savannah, which started as a clinical campus and is now a four-year campus; and Columbus, which also started as a clinical campus but has recently transitioned into a fouryear campus.

This operating grant helps to fund several initiatives at the school, including clinical rotations for students at rural practice locations and an expansion of its Primary Care Accelerated Track program which condenses medical school to three years and transitions graduates into primary care residency programs at Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah, Atrium Health Navicent Medical Center in Macon and Piedmont Columbus Regional Hospital in Columbus.

Year Percentage of graduates entering core specialites Percentage of graduates now
practicing in Georgia

Mercer Graduates

2018

2019

2020

72.50% 75.00% 75.44%

53.23% 59.64% 56.91%

2021 84.13% 57.95%

2022 73.80% 55.02%

2023 82.30% 53.93%

Number of Medical Students Enrolled at Mercer University School of Medicine

600

557

500 448 460 473 484 493 504

400

82.3%
Rate of graduates entering primary care or core specialties
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300
200
100
0 2016-20172017-20182018-20192019-20202020-20221021-20222022-2023

2023 Annual Report

Morehouse SOM Operating Grant

Morehouse SOM
Operating Grant

The purpose of the Morehouse School of Medicine operating grant is to educate physicians and other health professionals to address primary healthcare needs with an emphasis on people of color and the underserved urban and rural populations throughout Georgia.

With 459 total students (306 of whom are Georgia residents), Morehouse School of Medicine's campus is located in Atlanta.

This investment from the state through the operating grant allows the school to continue increasing the enrollment of the medical school and its residency programs even more, as well as ensure increased access to innovative and critical health services for the citizens of our state. In 2018, Morehouse SOM welcomed an incoming class of 100 medical students, a first in its 40+ year existence, and continues to grow accepting 127 students into the first-year class in 2023.

Also, the operating grant provides funding for upgrades to the equipment and simulation labs, which provide hands-on learning opportunities for medical students to start developing their clinical skills

Number of Medical Students Enrolled at Morehouse School of Medicine

Morehouse Graduates

Year Percentage of graduates entering core specialites Percentage of graduates now
practicing in Georgia

2018 78.90% 43.44%

2019 75.30% 43.00%

2020 79.31% 43.04%

2021 81.01% 42.00%

2022 73.80% 42.00%

2023 69.00% 43.00%

500

468 459

434

406 416

400

365

324

300

69.0%
Rate of graduates entering primary care or core specialties
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200
100
0 2016-20172017-20182018-20192019-20202020-20221021-20222022-2023

2023 Annual Report

Graduate Medical Education

Empowering Partnerships,
Driving Results

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2023 Annual Report

Graduate Medical Education

Graduate Medical Education (GME)

The GME Program collaborates with the state's designated teaching hospitals and Graduate Medical Education (GME) programs, commonly referred to as "residency," to ensure an ample supply of primary care and essential physician specialists. The Board
allocates state funding to assist in mitigating the expenses associated with training physicians in select teaching hospitals within the state.
Research indicates that resident physicians are inclined to practice within a 100-mile radius of their GME training location. Consequently, investing in GME programs is viewed by the State of Georgia as a strategic measure to fortify the state's physician workforce.
In fiscal year 2023, the Board allocated $30,770,014 to 27 institutions, enhancing Georgia's medical education initiatives and strengthening the physician workforce.

Fiscal Year 2023 Specialty and Number of Residents Under Contract

Specialty

Number of Residents Under Contract in FY2023

Rural Surgical Fellowship

2

Fellowships - Vision, Cancer, Neurology

7

Family Medicine

334

Pediatrics

61

Preventive Medicine

10

General Surgery

28

OB/GYN

120

Internal Medicine

398

Psychiatry

77

Emergency Medicine

84

Note : Residency Capitation included 2,140

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2023 Annual Report

Graduate Medical Education

Fiscal Year 2023
GME Appropriation

Emergency Medicine $1,288,163
Psychiatry $1,180,816
Fellowships $875,000

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry $861,470

Family Medicine $6,625,941

Pediatrics $1,037,495

Internal Medicine $6,314,029

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OB/GYN $1,946,019
General Surgery $459,095

Residency Capitation $6,708,107
Preventative Medicine $145,000

Rural Surgical Fellowship $300,000

Primary Care Advanced Track $899,684

Rural Surgery Initiative $353,968

2023 Annual Report

Physicians for Rural Areas

Physicians for Rural
AREAS

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2023 Annual Report

Physicians for Rural Areas

Physicians for

Rural Areas

GBHCW administers service-cancelable loan repayment programs for physicians, dentists, physician assistants and advanced practice registered nurses that assist in paying debt incurred for tuition, fees, and other expenses associated with the completion of the aforementioned degrees. Practitioners must agree to practice at least 40 hours per week in an underserved, rural county in Georgia with a population of 50,000 or less.

The Physicians for Rural Areas Assistance Program provide up to $25,000 a year in student loan repayment in return for a 12- month commitment to practice in a rural community. Recipients may receive a maximum of four loans and a maximum total student loan repayment of $100,000. The Dentists for Rural Area Assistance program offers the same contract to dentists in return for their rural dental practice.

In 2017, the Board implemented the Physician Assistant and Advanced Practice Registered Nurse loan repayment programs, which are the PA and APRN versions of the PRAA and are similar in program structure and requirements to the PRAA offering $10,000 per year, for a maximum of $40,000 over four years.

Since 1990, this program has proven to retain talent here in Georgia. About 88.94 percent of the program's participants remained in Georgia to practice after completing their obligation. Additionally, around 72.25% of former program participants in Georgia continue to practice in a qualifying county.

The loan repayment programs extended

Loan Repayment Program

improved access to care for Georgia residentsNinum4b5erruorfaalwcaorudnedtieRse.cipients

Physicians for Rural Areas Assistance

38

Dentists for Rural Loan Repayment Certain recipients are prac1t2icing in the

Physician Assistant Loan Repayment same county as fellow re21cipients.

APRN Loan Repayment

45

Total

116

Page 17

Loan repayment programs improved access to care for Georgia residents in 45 rural counties as noted in dark
blue

2023 Annual Report
Outlook for
Fiscal year 2024

Future Outlook FY 2024

Continue working with the Governor's Office, General Assembly, health care organizations and medical trade associations to address Georgia's healthcare workforce needs.
The Board is approaching the final stages of integrating live data from HB1013. Coordinating this intricate task requires the integration of multiple datasets from the Secretary of State's Office, the Georgia Board of Pharmacy, and the Georgia Composite Medical Board. Data is expected to be available online gradually starting 2024.
Continue to collaborate with Medical Education Advisory Committee (MEAC).
Administer competitive Nursing Schools Grant of $3,000,000 to programs with waitlists and committed to expanding nursing enrollment and graduating more skilled nurses in Georgia.
Collaborate with nursing licensure board and other clinical licensure boards.
Work with regional players for greater awareness with potential outlets.
Continuously strategize on how to increase residency and fellowship programs in Georgia.
Announce the initial awardees of the Nurse Faculty Loan Repayment Program. This newly established program seeks to alleviate the loan debt incurred during educational programs for individuals employed within certain qualifying institutions.
Collaborate with Graduate Medical Education Programs to organize a plan for the return of the Practice Opportunity Fair. In the past, this event has created opportunities to build relationships between resident physicians and hospitals/clinics in Georgia.
Announce the recipients of three Graduate Medical Education Grants, each amounting to $75,000.

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GEORGIA BOARD OF HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE

Questions or feedback?

www.healthcareworkforce.georgia.gov/
(404) 232- 7972
2 Martin Luther King Jr Drive SE, East Tower, 11th Floor Atlanta, Georgia, 30334

GBHCW@dch.ga.gov Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce

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