$2M grant awarded to bring more doctors to Butte County | News
A $2 million grant was awarded to bring more doctors for family medicine and psychological services to Butte County.
BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. – A $2 million grant was awarded Thursday to a non-profit to help bring more doctors to Butte County.
There will be eight new doctors coming to the area each year for family medicine and psychological services, starting in 2024 or 2025.
The $2 million grant will help establish a Family Medicine Residency program in Chico. The grant is funded by the California Department of Health.
Butte County Behavioral Health on Parmac Road in Chico
Healthy Rural California’s Psychiatry Residency program was recently accredited, one of seven programs in the U.S. to be accredited this year.
Residents will have at least three locations in Chico for clinical rotations: the VA of Northern California, Butte County Behavioral Health, and Therapeutic Solutions.
The Healthy Rural California CEO Kristy Bird MaKieve said about 50% of residents choose to stay in an area once they finish their residency program and curriculum.
MaKieve said this program has been in the works since 2019 and it will help getting access to care much easier.
“Mental health and psychiatry, I mean, it’s greatly needed,” MaKieve said. “We’re very proud of this effort. It’s also hard for local hospitals and clinics to do the steps required and have the funding to get to accreditation and start bringing residents.”
MaKieve said they’re on track for the first group of students to arrive in 2024 for the psychiatry program. The family medicine program is in the early planning stages so students will arrive in 2024 or 2025.
This program has been in the works since 2019 through the Butte-Glenn Medical Society Residency Task Force after as many as 60 physicians left the area after the Camp Fire.
The task force recommended addressing the mental health and behavioral health needs in the area first, followed by primary care.
Recruitment for residents is starting immediately for the program. Residents typically finish their education in about three years.
The Healthy Rural California offices in Meriam Park will be a hub for classes and workspaces for those residents.
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