{"id":95355,"date":"2019-04-29T09:48:42","date_gmt":"2019-04-29T19:48:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=95355"},"modified":"2019-05-01T14:20:17","modified_gmt":"2019-05-02T00:20:17","slug":"full-tuition-for-jabsom-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2019\/04\/29\/full-tuition-for-jabsom-students\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawai\u02bbi Pacific Health to pay full tuition for five JABSOM<\/abbr> first-year students"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Previous scholarship medical students<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In an effort to continue addressing the growing physician shortage in Hawaiʻi<\/span>, ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ<\/abbr> Manoa\u2019s John A. Burns School of Medicine<\/a> (JABSOM<\/abbr>) received a $750,000 commitment from Hawaiʻi<\/span> Pacific Health (HPH<\/abbr>), one of the state\u2019s largest healthcare systems, to pay for the full four-year tuition of five first-year JABSOM<\/abbr> students through its HPH<\/abbr> Medical Student Scholarship Fund.<\/p>\n

This follows another $750,000 commitment from HPH<\/abbr> in 2018 as part of a collaborative scholarship program that included local philanthropists Virginia and Barry Weinman and other community donors.<\/p>\n

HPH<\/abbr>\u2019s total commitment is now $1.5 million to fund the full tuition of 10 future Hawaiʻi<\/span> physicians.<\/p>\n

“When JABSOM<\/abbr> medical students graduate, their average educational debt is $169,000. This debt represents a barrier to practicing medicine in Hawaiʻi<\/span>, where physician reimbursement is lower than many parts of the nation, and practice expenses and the cost of living are higher,” said Raymond P. Vara, president and CEO<\/abbr> of HPH<\/abbr>. “Indeed, through these partnerships supporting the medical education of our students, we can keep more of our best and brightest students at home while serving a real community need. Hawaiʻi<\/span>\u2019s physician shortage is very real and only through the mutual collaboration and teamwork of our partners can we truly create a healthier Hawaiʻi<\/span>.”<\/p>\n

Added JABSOM<\/abbr> Dean Jerris Hedges<\/strong>, “Hawaiʻi<\/span> students, who represent nearly 90 percent of the entering medical school class at JABSOM<\/abbr>, represent the best means of addressing our physician workforce shortage. Allowing these students to graduate with minimal debt will enhance the retention of these students as practitioners in Hawaiʻi<\/span> and encourage their selection of clinical practice on neighbor islands.”<\/p>\n

Primary criteria considered for the HPH<\/abbr> Medical Student Scholarship Program at JABSOM<\/abbr>:<\/p>\n