2021 Georgia medical school graduate survey report.

2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey Report
Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce State of Georgia
Published Summer 2021 1

Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Table 1: Number of Responses by Medical School ....................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Methodology .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Key Findings from the 2021 Survey ........................................................................................................................................................... 5
Demographics ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 5 Intended Practice Location After Residency................................................................................................................................................................................. 6 Specialty ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Choice of and Match to Georgia Residency Programs.................................................................................................................................................................. 6 Table 2: Gender Distribution by Medical School .......................................................................................................................................................................... 7 Table 3: Average Age by Medical School...................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Figure 1: Aggregated Age Distribution ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Table 4: Citizenship Status......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Table 5: Race/Ethnicity by Medical School................................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Table 6: Hispanic Ethnicity by Medical School............................................................................................................................................................................ 12 Table 7: Specialty Matched to in Post Graduate Year 1 .............................................................................................................................................................. 13 Table 8: Intended Career Specialty ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 13 Figure 2: Year Specialty Decision Made ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 14 Table 9: Factors Important in Determining Specialty ................................................................................................................................................................. 15 Figure 3: Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Specialty.............................................................................................................................................. 16 Other Factors Important in Determining Specialty..................................................................................................................................................................... 17 Table 10: Successfully Matched to GME Program ...................................................................................................................................................................... 18 Table 11: In-State (Georgia) or Out-of-State Match ................................................................................................................................................................... 19 Figure 4: Percentage of Total In-State Matches by Medical School ............................................................................................................................................ 20 Figure 5: Matched to GME Program & Match to First-Choice Program ...................................................................................................................................... 21 Table 12: Any Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices ...................................................................................................................................................... 22 Table 13: Number of Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices by Medical School .............................................................................................................. 23
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Table 14: Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices............................................................................................................................................................. 25 Figure 7: Primary Reason for Leaving Georgia............................................................................................................................................................................ 26 Other Factors Important to Leaving Georgia for Residency ........................................................................................................................................................ 27 Table 15: Overall Perception of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty............................................................................................ 28 Figure 8: Overall Perception of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty ............................................................................................ 29 Table 16: Perception of Quality of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty........................................................................................ 30 Figure 9: Perception of Quality of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty ........................................................................................ 31 Table 17: Factors Important in Choosing Residency Program..................................................................................................................................................... 32 Figure 10: Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Residency Program............................................................................................................................ 33 Table 18: Other Factors Cited as Important in Choosing a Georgia Residency Program .............................................................................................................. 34 Figure 11: Plan to Practice in Underserved Area & Type of Underserved Area ........................................................................................................................... 35 Table 19: Intent to Practice in an Underserved Area and Type of Underserved Area by Medical School..................................................................................... 36 Map: Other States Where Georgia Medical School Graduates Plan to Practice Following Residency.......................................................................................... 37 Acknowledgements.................................................................................................................................................................................. 38
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Executive Summary

The Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce (GBHCW) has conducted an annual survey of graduating medical students from each of Georgia's medical schools since 2008. The purpose of this survey is to inform policy makers, medical school administrators, graduate medical education administrators, and other government and non-government agencies about the medical school pipeline. Also, it serves to give insight on why medical students chose a specialty and residency site and how many intend to ultimately practice in Georgia when their training is complete. The data in this report are aggregated from responses collected from each of Georgia's five medical schools. The medical schools that contributed to this year's report are as follows

Table 1: Number of Responses by Medical School

Medical School

Total

Survey

Completion

Graduates Completions

Rate

Emory University School of Medicine

128

113

88.3%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

232

168

72.4%

Mercer University School of Medicine

130

94

72.3%

Morehouse School of Medicine

80

67

83.8%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

129

61

47.3%

Total

699

503

72.0%

This year's MSG survey had slightly more responses than in 2020. In 2020, the MSG survey had 488 completions, or 69.4% of medical school graduates.

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Methodology
Each year in April, the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce (GBHCW) data team creates a Survey Monkey form of the Medical School Graduate survey and sends the link to four of the five medical schools' program directors via email. Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University collects and compiles their responses in their own manner. The GBHCW data team then sends periodic reminders and status update emails to each school until the completion deadline of May 31st. At this point, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University sends their compiled dataset to GBHCW and the data team downloads the complete Survey Monkey responses online. Analyses presented here were conducted using Microsoft Excel.
Key Findings from the 2021 Survey
Demographics
This year, more people identifying as female than male completed the MSG survey; 53.0% of survey completers are female. The medical school with the highest percentage of female respondents is Morehouse (69.8%), while the school with the lowest percentage of female respondents is PCOM-Georgia (44.3%).
The average age of all respondents is 27.4 years old. The youngest respondent is 24 years old, while the oldest respondent is 43. PCOM-Georgia has the oldest average age of respondents at 28.5 years old, compared to MCG whose average age of respondents is 26.4 years old.
A comparable percentage of respondents this year identified as native born or naturalized U.S. citizens (98.2% of respondents last year versus 98.2% this year). Five respondents identified as permanent residents and four have an "other" citizenship status.
In 2021, 57.4% of respondents identify as white. This is slightly higher than that percentage last year (57.2% year). Overall, 42.6% of respondents identified as a non-white race/ethnicity (14.7% Black/African American; 20.7% Asian/Pacific Islander; 4.4% multi-race; and 2.89% "other"). Morehouse School of Medicine has the highest percentage of respondents identifying as non-white (88.1%) while the school with the lowest percentage of non-white respondents is Mercer University (26.9%).
Overall, 7.4% of respondents identify as Hispanic. Morehouse has the highest percentage of respondents (9.0%) who identify as Hispanic, while Mercer has the lowest percentage of respondents (5.4%) who identify as Hispanic.
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Intended Practice Location After Residency
60.0% of respondents (277) intend to locate their practice in an underserved area. The school with the highest rate of respondents planning to locate in an underserved area is Morehouse (83.6%); the school with the lowest percentage is MCG (51.2%)
Of those who plan to locate their practice in an underserved area, 61.0% (169) plan to practice in an inner-city community. The remaining 39.0% of respondents (108) plan to locate in a rural community.
44.2% of respondents (222) answered that Georgia is the likely state for their practice after residency. Of those, 46.8% (104) listed Atlanta as the likely city.
Specialty
57.2% of respondents (265) will enter a primary care/core specialty. Mercer University's respondents were most likely to say they would enter a primary care/core specialty for their PGY-1 year (86.7%), while Medical College of Georgia respondents were least likely (62.8%).
Of the 473 respondents who answered questions on both PGY-1 specialty choice and ultimate practice specialty, 72.5% plan to ultimately practice in a primary care/core specialty.
More than half of respondents (55.0%) made the decision about what specialty to pursue during their third year of medical school.
Choice of and Match to Georgia Residency Programs
51.8% of respondents listed a Georgia residency program among their top three choices during the Match. This is a slightly lower percentage than last year (54.3%).
Respondents from Morehouse School of Medicine are those most likely to have a Georgia GME program among their top three choices during the Match (61.9%). Respondents from MCG are the least likely to have a Georgia GME program in their top three choices (49.1%).
25.2% of respondents who responded that they had a Georgia GME program among their top three choices in the Match listed two or three Georgia GME programs. This is slightly higher than that figure last year, when 22.2% of respondents ranked more than one Georgia GME program in their top three choices.
The top four Georgia GME programs ranked by survey respondents are Emory (115 respondents); Medical College of Georgia (47); WellStar Kennestone (34); and Memorial Health University Medical Center (25).
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 2: Gender Distribution by Medical School

Medical School
Emory University School of Medicine

Female

Male

Total

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

62

54.9%

51

45.1%

113

100.0%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

81

48.2%

87

51.8%

168

100.0%

Mercer University School of Medicine

56

60.2%

37

39.8%

93

100.0%

Morehouse School of Medicine

40

59.7%

27

40.3%

67

100.0%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

27

44.3%

34

55.7%

61

100.0%

Total

266

53.0%

236

47.0%

502

100.0%

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 3: Average Age by Medical School

Medical School
Emory University School of Medicine Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University Mercer University School of Medicine Morehouse School of Medicine Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia
Total Respondents Total (Percentage)

Age Grouping

24-29
97 155 79 53 38
422 85.4%

30-34
16 8 9 13 22
68 13.8%

35-39
0 1 1 0 1
3 0.6%

40
0 0 1 0 0
1 0.2%

Average Age
27.5 26.4 27.6 28.0 28.5
27.4 100.0%

Note: 9 respondents did not answer the age question. Averages and total percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (494).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Figure 1: Aggregated Age Distribution
Aggregated Age Distribution
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 Age of Respondents 9

Frequency

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 4: Citizenship Status

Citizenship Status
Citizen (Naturalized or Native-Born) Permanent Resident Other
Total

Number
493 5 4
502

Percent
98.2% 0.1% 0.8%
100.0%

Note: 1 respondent did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (502).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 5: Race/Ethnicity by Medical School

Medical School

White

Asian

Black

Multi-Race

Other

Total

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Emory University School of Medicine
Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University
Mercer University School of Medicine

80 70.8% 20 17.7%

7

6.2%

5

4.4%

1

0.9% 113 100.0%

103 61.3% 36 21.4% 16

9.5%

7

4.2%

6

3.6% 168 100.0%

68 73.1% 13 14.0%

6

6.5%

4

4.3%

2

2.2%

93

100.0%

Morehouse School of Medicine

8

11.9% 16 23.9% 40 59.7%

0

0.0%

3

4.5%

67

100.0%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

29 47.5% 19 31.2%

5

8.2%

6

9.8%

2

3.3%

61

100.0%

Total

288 57.4% 104 20.7% 74 14.7% 22 4.4% 14 2.8% 502 100.0%

Note: 1 respondent did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (502).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 6: Hispanic Ethnicity by Medical School

Medical School
Emory University School of Medicine

Yes

No

Total

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

7

6.3%

105

93.8%

112

100.0%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

14

8.4%

153

91.6%

167

100.0%

Mercer University School of Medicine

5

5.4%

88

94.6%

93

100.0%

Morehouse School of Medicine

6

9.0%

61

91.0%

67

100.0%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

5

8.2%

56

91.8%

61

100.0%

Total

37

7.4% 463 92.6% 500 100.0%

Note: 3 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (500).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Table 7: Specialty Matched to in Post Graduate Year 1

Table 8: Intended Career Specialty

PGY-1 Specialty

Frequency

% of Total Respondents

Internal Medicine

108

Family Medicine

46

Pediatrics

44

Emergency Medicine

39

General Surgery

39

OB/GYN

39

Psychiatry

28

Primary Care/Core Total

343

Transitional Year

27

Anesthesiology

17

Orthopaedic Surgery

15

Internal Medicine Preliminary

8

Internal Medicine/Pediatrics

7

Urology

7

Neurosurgery

6

Other Specialties

43

22.8% 9.7% 9.3% 8.2% 8.2% 8.2% 5.9% 72.5% 5.7% 3.6% 3.2% 1.7% 1.5% 1.5% 1.3% 9.1%

Non-Primary Care/Core Total

130

27.5%

Note: 30 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (473).

Practice Specialty

Frequency

Internal Medicine

60

Family Medicine

44

Emergency Medicine

38

OB/GYN

38

Pediatrics

33

Psychiatry

27

General Surgery

25

Primary Care/Core Total

265

Anesthesiology

21

Ophthalmology

13

Orthopaedic Surgery

13

Cardiology

10

Neurology

10

Radiology

10

Other Specialties

112

Unsure or non-medicine field

9

Non-Primary Care/Core Total

198

% of Total Respondents
13.0% 9.5% 8.2% 8.2% 7.1% 5.8% 5.4% 57.2% 4.5% 2.8% 2.8% 2.2% 2.2% 2.2% 24.2% 1.9%
42.8%

Note: 40 respondents did not answer this question.

Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses

(463).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 2: Year Specialty Decision Made

When Did You Make the Decision About What Specialty to Pursue?

60.0%

55.0%

50.0%

40.0%

30.0%

20.0%

10.0%

5.5%

10.2%

6.2%

4.7%

15.1%

0.0%

Prior to entering college

During/after college 1st year of medical 2nd year of medical 3rd year of medical 4th year of medical

school

school

school

school

3.2%
Not certain

Note: 34 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (469). 14

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 9: Factors Important in Determining Specialty

Factor
Lifestyle Competitiveness of Specialty Mentor/Role Model Influence Options for Fellowship Training Future Earning Potential Length of Residency Training Family Expectations Medical Education Debt

No Influence Number Percent

Strength of Factor's Influence

Minor

Moderate

Number Percent Number Percent

Strong Number Percent

Total Responses

29

6.2%

78

16.7% 183 39.3% 176 37.8%

466

142 30.5% 164 35.3% 127 27.3%

32

6.9%

465

58

12.4%

89

19.1% 152 32.6% 167 35.8%

465

70

15.1% 108 23.2% 161 34.6% 126 27.1%

465

80

17.2% 158 34.0% 172 37.0%

55

11.8%

465

81

17.4% 153 32.9% 184 39.6%

47

10.1%

465

226 48.6% 126 27.1%

71

15.3%

42

9.0%

465

209 44.9% 140 30.1%

79

17.0%

37

8.0%

465

Note: Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (Total Responses column) for each factor.

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 3: Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Specialty

Percent of Respondents

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Specialty

32

55

47

42

37

126

176

127

167

71

79

Strong Influence

172

184

Moderate Influence

161

164

152

126

140

Minor Influence

No Influence

183

158

153

108 89

78
29 Lifestyle

142

58

70

80

Competitiveness Mentor/Role of Specialty Model Influence

Options for Fellowship
Training

Future Earning Potential

Factors

81
Length of Residency
Training

226

209

Family

Medical

Expectations Education Debt

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Other Factors Important in Determining Specialty Sixty-six respondents answered the open-ended question citing other factors for choosing their specialty. Four factors emerged as important considerations when choosing their specialties and are described below.
Personal enjoyment and interest (29): This is by far the most common theme. Respondents mentioned "love," "enjoyment," "a spiritual calling," "passion," fit with their own personality and experiences, and "sense of purpose."
Specialty attributes (16): Respondents mentioned attributes of the specialty such as diverse practice options, the culture of the specialty, ability to have diverse training experiences, commitment to science and innovation, and values of the specialty.
Other (12): These comments include other topics that influenced their specialty decision, such as work-life balance, stress, scheduling, family, and mentorship.
Patients (9): Respondents mentioned the ability to impact patients, enjoying working with the patient population, patient interaction, and diverse patient cases.
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 10: Successfully Matched to GME Program

Medical School

Yes

No

Total

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Emory University School of Medicine

109

96.5%

4

3.5%

113

100.0%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

164

97.6%

4

2.4%

168

100.0%

Mercer University School of Medicine

90

96.8%

3

3.2%

93

100.0%

Morehouse School of Medicine

67

100.0%

0

0.0%

67

100.0%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

59

96.7%

2

3.3%

61

100.0%

Total

489

97.4%

13

2.6%

502

100.0%

Note: 1 respondent did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses for each school.

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 11: In-State (Georgia) or Out-of-State Match

Medical School Emory University School of Medicine

Location of Matched Program

Georgia

Out-of-State

Number Percent Number Percent

30

27.5%

79

72.5%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

46

28.0%

118

72.0%

Mercer University School of Medicine

31

37.3%

52

62.7%

Morehouse School of Medicine

20

31.7%

43

68.3%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia

12

23.1%

40

76.9%

Total

Number 109 164 83 63 52

Percent 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%

Total

139

29.5%

332

70.5%

471

100.0%

Note: 32 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses for each school.

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Figure 4: Percentage of Total In-State Matches by Medical School
Location of GME Match & Breakdown of In-State Matched Students by Medical School

Out of State 70.5%

In State 29.5%

Mercer University School of Medicine
6.6%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta
University 9.8%

Morehouse School of Medicine
4.2%

Emory University School of Medicine
6.4%
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-
Georgia 2.5% 20

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 5: Matched to GME Program & Match to First-Choice Program

Match to GME Program & Match to First Choice Program

Matched to a GME Program

Matched to First-Choice Program

No 2.6%

Yes, 97.4% Missing Data
3.4%

No 50.6%
Yes 43.4%

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 12: Any Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices

Medical School Emory University School of Medicine Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University Mercer University School of Medicine Morehouse School of Medicine Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia
Total

No Number Percent

58

51.3%

Yes Number Percent

55

48.7%

Total Number Percent

113

100.0%

85

50.9%

82

49.1%

167

100.0%

39

45.9%

46

54.1%

85

100.0%

24

38.1%

39

61.9%

63

100.0%

27

49.1%

28

50.9%

55

100.0%

233

48.2%

250

51.8%

483

100.0%

Note: 20 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (483).

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 13: Number of Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices by Medical School

Medical School Emory University School of Medicine

Number of Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices

One

Two

Three

Total

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

46

86.8%

6

11.3%

1

1.9%

53 100.0%

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

20

21.1% 67 70.5%

8

8.4%

95 100.0%

Mercer University School of Medicine

32

72.7%

4

9.1%

8

18.2% 44 100.0%

Morehouse School of Medicine

17

48.6% 12 34.3%

6

17.1% 35 100.0%

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia 16

59.3%

6

22.2%

5

18.5% 27 100.0%

Total

131 51.6% 95 37.4% 28

11.0 254 100.0%

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 6: Georgia GME Programs in Respondents' Top Three Choices in Match
Distribution of Georgia GME Programs in Respondents' Top Three Choices in Match

Had a Georgia GME Program in Top Three Choices

Number of Georgia GME Programs in Top
Three Choices

No

Yes

233

250

1 26.9%
2 19.5%
3 5.7%

Note: 4 respondents who answered they did have a Georgia GME program in their top three choices did not specify the number of programs.
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 14: Georgia GME Programs in Top Three Choices

Georgia GME Program
Emory University School of Medicine (Atlanta) Medical College of Georgia (Augusta) WellStar Kennestone Regional Medical Center (Marietta) Memorial Health University Medical Center (Savannah) Morehouse School of Medicine (Atlanta) Navicent Health-Central GA (Macon) Gateway Behavioral Health (Savannah) Northeast Georgia Medical Center (Gainesville) Northside Gwinnett Medical Center (Lawrenceville) Coliseum Medical Center (Macon) WellStar Atlanta Medical Center (Atlanta) AU/UGA Medical Partnership-St. Mary's Healthcare (Athens) Floyd Medical Center (Rome) Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center (Athens) Redmond Regional Medical Center (Rome) Piedmont Columbus Regional Midtown (Columbus)

Number of Respondents
115 47 34 25 23 21 10 9 9 8 7 5 3 3 2 1

Percentage of Total Survey Respondents (503) Having this Program in their Top Three Choices
22.9% 9.3% 6.8% 5.0% 4.6% 4.2% 2.0% 1.8% 1.8% 1.6% 1.4% 1.0% 0.6% 0.6% 0.4% 0.2%

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 7: Primary Reason for Leaving Georgia

Reasons for Leaving Georgia for Residency

Specialty not offered

in Georgia 2.8%
Military obligation Quality of Georgia 4.2%

Lack of osteopathic residencies 0.5%

residency programs

4.7%

Other 11.2%
Family reasons 15.4%

Preferred a highly reputable program
out of state in specialty area
41.6%

Did not match to a Georgia program
19.6%
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Other Factors Important to Leaving Georgia for Residency Forty-five respondents gave an open-ended answer on other factors that influenced their choice to leave Georgia for residency. Note: many responses to this question included indicators of multiple categories.
Location (17): These comments indicate location-based reasons for wanting to leave Georgia or wanting to go elsewhere for residency. Examples include wanting a change of scenery, cheaper cost of living, or wanting to be near geographical features like mountains or beaches.
Program Factors (10): The second-most prevalent theme among comments reveals program-related factors that influenced respondents' decisions to leave Georgia. These included favoring programs in other states because of better fellowship and training opportunities; wanting to pursue a program that is not available in Georgia; wanting a residency that has affiliation with certain hospitals; or not favoring the program-related factors at their medical school institution.
Match (7): These comments indicated a practical concern that prohibited respondents' ability to stay in Georgia for residency training. These include not being accepted into a Georgia program or being accepted elsewhere.
Family (6): These responses mentioned the influence of significant others, couple's matching, and going to residency programs close to family.
Returning after Residency (3): Three respondents said that they would be returning to Georgia after their residency training.
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 15: Overall Perception of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty

Response
Very Negative 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Very Positive
Total

Number
5 2 11 22 58 49 114 97 42 64
464

Percent
1.1% 0.4% 2.4% 4.7% 12.5% 10.6% 24.6% 20.9% 9.1% 13.8%
100.0%

Note: 39 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (464). 28

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Figure 8: Overall Perception of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty
Overall Perception of Georgia's Residency Programs in Respondent's Specialty
30.0%

25.0% 20.0%

24.6% 20.9%

15.0% 10.0%

12.5%

10.6%

13.8% 9.1%

5.0%

4.7%

2.4%

1.1%
0.0%

0.4%

Very

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Very

Negative

Positive

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 16: Perception of Quality of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty

Responses
Low Quality 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
High Quality
Total

Number
4 3 11 16 54 50 104 100 59 65
466

Percent
0.9% 0.6% 2.4% 3.4% 11.6% 10.7% 22.3% 21.5% 12.7% 13.9%
100.0%

Note: 37 respondents did not answer this question. Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (466). 30

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 9: Perception of Quality of Georgia's Residency Training Programs in Respondent's Specialty
Perception of the Quality of Georgia's Residency Programs in Respondent's Specialty
25.0%

20.0%

22.3% 21.5%

15.0% 10.0%

11.6% 10.7%

13.9% 12.7%

5.0%

2.4%

3.4%

0.9%
0.0%

0.6%

Low

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

High

Quality

Quality

31

Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 17: Factors Important in Choosing Residency Program

Factor Family

No Influence Number Percent

Strength of Factor's Influence

Minor

Moderate

Number Percent Number Percent

Strong Number Percent

Total Responses

58

12.4%

77

16.5% 141 30.3% 190 40.8%

466

Location

27

5.8%

55

11.8% 145 31.2% 238 51.2%

465

Reputation of Residency Program 33

7.1%

73

15.7% 185 39.7% 175 37.6%

466

Fellowship Opportunities

44

9.5%

92

19.8% 155 33.3% 174 37.4%

465

Availability of Residency Positions in Desired Specialty

100

21.5%

85

18.2% 148 31.8% 133 28.5%

466

Resident Salary

182 39.3% 164 35.4%

98

21.2%

19

4.1

463

Note: Percentages are calculated from the total valid responses (Total Responses column) for each factor.

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Figure 10: Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Residency Program

Percent of Respondents

Strength of Factors' Influence Upon Choice of Residency Program

100%

19

90%

133

80%

190

174

98
175

238
70%

60% 148
50%

40%

30%

85

20%

10%

100

0% Availability of Residency Positions in
Desired Specialty

141
77 58
Family

155 145

92
44
Fellowship Opportunities

55 27
Location

Factors

164
185

182 73

33
Reputation of Residency Program

Resident salary

Strong Influence Moderate Influence Minor Influence No Influence

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Table 18: Other Factors Cited as Important in Choosing a Georgia Residency Program
Respondents entered open-answered text to further explain the factors that contributed to their choice of a Georgia residency program. The responses are broken down into those offer positive and negative feedback about programs.

Positive Feedback
Had a great elective experience High patient load and high patient diversity Ample fellowship opportunities Great program culture Opportunities for community work Desire to work at specific Georgia hospitals Attractive benefits and incentives such as childcare, high
ratings as a place to work, resident wellness programs Great training in specialty Quality of life in the city of the residency program Autonomy in training Loved medical school/home institution

Negative Feedback
Program too strenuous, competitive, or intense No program commitment to equity and diversity Program is male-dominated Georgia programs do not favor their own students Bad experiences with interviewing, residents, and faculty Programs are weak in desired specialty Undesirable location Programs do not accept D.O.s Complicated patient cases must be sent to other hospitals Poor program leadership Program seemed unresponsive to resident feedback Unfavorable experiences with program directors

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey

Figure 11: Plan to Practice in Underserved Area & Type of Underserved Area
Plan to Practice in an Underserved Area & Type of Underserved Area

Plan to Practice in Underserved Area

Type of Underserved Area

186

Inner-City

108

276

Other

No

169 Rural

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Table 19: Intent to Practice in an Underserved Area and Type of Underserved Area by Medical School

Medical School

Intend to Practice in Underserved Area & Type of Underserved Area

Yes

No

Inner City

Percent Intending Rural Underserved Practice

Total Responses

Emory University School of Medicine

54

43

13

Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University

79

49

34

Mercer University School of Medicine

23

19

43

Morehouse School of Medicine

8

42

4

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia 22

16

14

Total

186 169 108

Total (Percentage)

40.3% 36.6% 23.4%

51.4% 51.2% 72.9% 83.6% 58.8%
60.0%

109 162 85 55 51
462 100.0%

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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Map: Other States Where Georgia Medical School Graduates Plan to Practice Following Residency
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey
Acknowledgements
This report was produced under the direction of LaSharn Hughes, MBA, Executive Director; Leanna Greenwood, MA, Senior Data Analyst; G.E. Alan Dever, MD PhD, Consultant; Jocelyn Hart, Data Analyst. This document is provided to the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce members on behalf of Executive Director LaSharn Hughes.
Board Members:
Terri McFadden-Garden, M.D. Chair David B. Kay, M.D. Vice-Chair William R. "Will" Kemp - Secretary/Treasurer James Barber, M.D. W. Scott Bohlke, M.D. Jacinto del Mazo, M.D. John E. Delzell Jr., M.D. MSPH Steven Gautney, MSHA Michael J. Groover, D.M.D. Indran Indrakrishnan, M.D. George M. McCluskey, III, M.D. W. Doug Skelton, M.D. Amy Reeves, PA-C Antonio Rios, M.D.
The Board would like to thank Georgia's medical schools for participating in the survey: Emory University School of Medicine Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University Mercer University School of Medicine Morehouse University School of Medicine Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine-Georgia
The 2021 Georgia Medical School Graduate Survey report can be viewed and downloaded on the internet at healthcareworkforce.georgia.gov. The Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce welcomes comments and suggestions for future editions of this report. Please send comments to leanna.greenwood@dch.ga.gov.
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