NEWS
Marshall University Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine
Establishing West Virginia ’ s first center for comprehensive multiple sclerosis care
“ It was important to me that Marshall Health take ownership of this care gap and commit to caring for MS patients — not just from a neurology perspective but to truly help them comprehensively manage their illness across a variety of subspecialties ,” Ferguson said .
Paul Ferguson , MD , a practicing neurologist at Marshall Health and professor of neurology at the Marshall University Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine , first identified a disparity in the level of care for multiple sclerosis ( MS ) patients in West Virginia in 2013 . At that time , the only physician in the region with expertise in the management of MS had relocated out of state resulting in numerous displaced patients who still required West Virginia ( WV ) -based care , not only for convenience but also due to insurance restrictions . Ferguson ’ s response was to establish an MS clinic at Marshall Health . Eight years later , the clinic now serves more than 1,000 patients with the disease , and the coordinated care it provides patients extends far beyond the walls of the clinic .
During the next four years , Ferguson became a leader within the growing practice . He was named inaugural chair of the medical school ’ s newly formed department of neurology in 2015 . As the practice further expanded , Ferguson and other neurology faculty built the expertise and partnerships necessary to advance care for MS patients in WV and several surrounding states . The medical school , under the direction of program director and associate professor Justin Nolte , MD , added an accredited neurology residency program in 2017 . It also engaged in clinical and translational research and is currently enrolling in multiple clinical trials for MS .
A diagnosis of multiple sclerosis is often accompanied by numerous symptoms , including weakness , muscle spasticity , bladder dysfunction , and mental health issues , which can require a number of different specialists to be involved in a patient ’ s care . Collaboration across other medical specialties may include functional neurosurgery , neuropsychology , neuroradiology , ophthalmology , orthopaedics , pain management , psychiatry , and urology . These specialists each have expertise in the evaluation and symptom management specific to MS patients .
Marshall School of Medicine awarded planning grant for new rural surgery residency program
The Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine received a $ 750,000 three-year grant from the U . S . Department of Health and Human Services ’ Health Resources & Services Administration ( HRSA ) to support the planning and development of West Virginia ’ s ( WV ) first rural surgery residency program .
The grant , which will be administered through the Marshall Community Health Consortium , is one of only nine grants awarded as part of the HRSA Rural Residency Planning and Development Program to help address physician workforce shortages in rural communities . This is the first time HRSA funds have been awarded to plan a rural surgery residency . According to the Association of American Medical Colleges , a shortage of between 23,100 and 31,600 general surgeons is expected by 2025 .
The consortium , which is composed of the Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine , Marshall Health , Cabell Huntington Hospital , Valley Health , and Holzer Health Systems , will partner with Logan Regional Medical Center , a 132-bed acute care facility in Logan
County , WV , to develop curriculum , recruit faculty , and address the clinical and learning environment needs necessary to establish an accredited rural surgery residency program . Residents will spend at least 50 % of their five-year training residency in a rural hospital .
“ While the basic principles remain the same , rural surgery requires a wide spectrum of care that is different from what trainees experience in an urban academic medical center ,” said Farzad Amiri , MD , a general surgeon and associate professor at the Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine , who will serve as director of the program .
In Logan County , Jodi M . Cisco-Goff , MD , general surgeon and assistant professor , will serve as the program ’ s associate director . Cisco-Goff , who completed both her medical degree and general surgery residency at Marshall before joining the medical school ’ s faculty in 2002 , has been practicing in southern WV for nearly 20 years .
The program aims to receive initial accreditation in 2022 and welcome its first residents in July 2023 . The program will phase in new residents each year until a maximum complement of 15 residents is reached .
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