Teaching health center (THC) graduate medical education (GME) payment program - graduate medical education program: community health centers, INC

The Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration Bureau of Health Professionals awarded Community Health Centers Inc. $1,708,464 on March 1, 2026, to sponsor and operate a three-year Family Medicine residency program under the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Payment Program (CFDA 93.530).

The residency program trains 12 residents across three academic years, with 4 residents in the first year (AY25–26). Training commenced July 1, 2025, and the program extends through June 30, 2029. Community Health Centers Inc., a federally qualified health center in West Valley City, Utah, operates as the accredited sponsoring institution and provides outpatient rotations for residents. The program is structured to develop family physicians with focus on vulnerable and underserved populations. Residents rotate at two additional training sites operated by Intermountain Health: LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City for adult and pediatric inpatient medicine, and Primary Children's Hospital for pediatric training.

Community Health Centers Inc. serves over 35,000 patients annually, 91 percent of whom are racial or ethnic minorities, 73 percent requiring services in languages other than English, and 82 percent living at or below 200 percent of federal poverty guidelines. Utah faces significant shortages of primary care physicians in rural and urban underserved areas, a condition the funding priority identifies as a health professional shortage area and medically underserved community.

Discipline of program: family medicine residency type of application: new eligible entity type: federally qualified health center operates as the sponsoring institution for the residency program. Funding priority: health professional shortage area (hpsa) + medically underserved community began training residents: anticipated 7/1/2025 organization website: residency.CHC-UT.ORG overview of the residency program: community health centers, INC. Is a single program sponsoring institution accredited by the acgme (american college of graduate medical education). The three-year residency program is designed to develop well rounded family physicians with a strong focus on providing care to vulnerable and underserved populations. Outpatient rotations will occur at community health centers, INC., the largest federally qualified health center in utah. Community health centers, INC. Provides care to over 35,000 patients per year with 91% of patients being a racial/ethnic minority, 73% best served in a language other than english, and 82% of patients living at or below the 200% of federal poverty guideline. Residents in the program will also care for patients at LDS hospital, an urban hospital, located in salt lake city as well as primary children's hospital, a premier pediatric referral center for the intermountain west, for both adult and pediatric inpatient medicine rotations. Total resident FTE positions: 12 (4-4-4) resident FTE positions for AY25-26: 4 (4-0-0) rotation sites: residents will rotate at two hospitals owned and operated by intermountain health. Both LDS hospital and primary children's hospital have provided resident training in the prior academic year. Project description: utah faces a significant shortage of primary care physicians in rural and urban underserved areas, leading to negative health outcomes that disproportionately affect racial and ethnic minorities, and uninsured individuals. Numerous health professional shortage areas (hpsas) exist across the state, yet utah produces only 29 family medicine graduates annually. Unlike other specialties, which focus on specific age groups or organ systems, family physicians are uniquely qualified to treat a broad range of conditions and provide comprehensive care for patients of all ages - from newborns to seniors. Family physicians are the primary providers of care for underserved populations in both rural and urban settings. In addition to diagnosing and treating illness, family physicians offer critical access to preventive care, including routine checkups, health-risk assessments, immunizations, screenings, and personalized counseling to promote healthy lifestyles. Access to a regular primary care physician has been linked to lower infant mortality, higher birth weights, immunization rates exceeding national standards, reduced healthcare costs, and longer, healthier lives. Community health centers, INC. (CHC), the largest federally qualified health center (fqhc) in utah, is well positioned to train residents in a teaching health center. Established in 1979, CHC operates 8 clinics that provide integrated, high-quality medical, behavioral (including substance use disorder) and dental care. With over 20 years of experience training and mentoring health profession learners, CHC physicians serve as adjunct faculty in the university of utah's department of family and preventive medicine. The CHC family medicine residency program will train 12 residents (4 per year) in diverse, underserved outpatient primary care settings across both urban and rural areas to help meet the needs of both utah and the national healthcare shortage. In addition to their outpatient experience at CHC, residents will complete specialty and inpatient rotations at two outstanding local hospitals and participate in annual rural rotations to gain broad, hands-on experience.