February 26, 2008

Harrisburg Primary Care Group Honored by SIU Med School

The Harrisburg Primary Care Group and its family medicine physicians who serve as preceptor teachers for Southern Illinois University School of Medicine are being honored this week by SIU’s Department of Family and Community Medicine (FCM).  The physicians are being recognized for the contributions they’ve made in educating its medical students.

Drs. Matt and Laura Winkleman, Dr. Larry Jones and Dr. Steve Knight of Harrisburg Primary Care Group are being recognized by FCM faculty physicians from Springfield.  The group is receiving a “Center of Excellence” award from SIU for having served as a preceptor site for its School of Medicine since 1988.  SIU is recognizing a handful of sites for providing its students with a broad experience in the family medicine specialty and for serving as strong models for a good family medicine medical practice.

“The Harrisburg physicians and staff have provided an excellent teaching experience for our preceptorship program and have consistently received very favorable student feedback,” says Dr. Amber J. Barnhart, associate professor of family and community medicine.  “We depend on wonderful, experienced physicians like these for opportunities for our students to develop their medical knowledge in an office setting while working under the watchful eye of the supervising physicians.”

Since its beginning in 1981, nearly 2,000 SIU medical students have participated in the program, which is offered by the School’s Department of Family and Community Medicine.

SIU School of Medicine is a public medical school established in 1970 and focused on the health care needs of downstate Illinois.  An international leader in medical education, the school is based in Carbondale and Springfield and is specifically oriented to educating new physicians prepared to practice in Illinois communities.  Since opening, more than 2,100 physicians have graduated from its program.  Its Web site is www.siumed.edu.

- 30 -