Mission

Our mission is to provide high quality education in family medicine, further the scholarship of our discipline, serve the patients of our community, advance the mission of our School of Medicine and support our university.

Vision

The vision of the USD Sanford School of Medicine Department of Family Medicine is to improve the health of the people of South Dakota and beyond through leadership in family medicine education, clinical practice, research and community service.

The South Dakota Area Health Education Center connects students to careers in health care, health care professionals to communities and communities to better health.

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The Center for Rural Health Improvement has a focus on social determinants of health. The team takes a social location perspective (e.g. race, class, gender, disability, and rurality) in addressing community needs to improve health and wellness outcomes. The team does this through supporting the development of new programs (e.g. through grant writing/management), evaluation of programmatic efforts, providing technical assistance, project management, and performing academic research that contributes to knowledge in this area. Since December of 2020, CRHI has brought in over $3.1 million to support efforts to improve health and wellness across South Dakota.

The Frontier and Rural Medicine (FARM) program initiative at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine helps to further address the health care needs of South Dakotans who reside in our mostly rural state.

We provide family medicine training in conjunction with affiliates in Sioux Falls, Pierre and Rapid City.

Sioux Falls Family Medicine Residency

The combination of hands-on training with experienced doctors, dedicated nurses, a well-rounded training program and cutting edge technology makes the Sioux Falls Family Medicine Residency the leading choice for those interested in pursuing family medicine. Established in 1973, the residency has graduated nearly 300 residents who practice mainly in South Dakota and its neighboring states.

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Pierre Rural Family Medicine Residency

This is a 1-2 program, with a separate NRMP Match number, that accepts 2 residents per year. The first year is in Sioux Falls, with years 2 and 3 in Pierre, a rural community of 14,000.

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Rapid City Family Medicine Residency

Developed and implemented to assist the western South Dakota region by training physicians to provide broad-based, high quality, primary care in a rural setting, this program offers extensive post-graduate level education in the medical and surgical disciplines, including the practice of obstetrics.

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Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG): Family Medicine Interest Groups (FMIGs) are an excellent resource for students interested in exploring family medicine in an informal, but educational (and fun!) setting. The USD SSOM FMIG provides programming and information that may not be offered in the medical school curriculum. Medical students hear about the history of family medicine and its future and are exposed to a wide range of clinical skills and procedures important to family physicians. They also have the opportunity to interact with current family physicians in an informal setting. The AAFP provides resources for the activities.

Rural Health Interest Group (RHIG): The USD Rural Health Interest Group is an interdisciplinary group that encompasses the medicine and health sciences students at the University of South Dakota. Formed in 2020, the goal of the group is to highlight the rural/frontier opportunities that exist in the state of South Dakota and to bring those opportunities to the students who will hopefully one day practice in these areas.

Emergency Medicine Interest Group (EMIG): The Emergency Medicine Interest Group (EMIG) is a student run and directed group dedicated to Emergency Medicine. Goals include: promoting growth of emergency medicine education at the medical student level; identifying new educational methodologies advancing undergraduate education in emergency medicine; and supporting educational endeavors of an EMIG.

Faculty Awards

• Edward J. Batt, MD Memorial Award
  The Edward J Batt, MD Memorial Award was established in 1979 in memory of USD SSSOM Department of Family Medicine faculty member Dr. Batt.  The award recognizes a Department of Family Medicine clinical faculty member for outstanding teaching.
• Family Medicine Educator and Scholar Award
  The Family Medicine Educator and Scholar Award was established in 2001 to recognize excellence in teaching and scholarship.  Academic faculty members are eligible for this award and nominations are sought from faculty, residents and students.
• Earl Kemp, Sioux Falls Family Medicine Residency
  The Earl Kemp Award honors Dr. Earl Kemp who served as the Sioux Falls Family Medicine Residency Program Director for 31 years.  Recipients of this award must embody at least one of the areas that Dr. Kemp pursued including academic excellence, rural family medicine, full spectrum family medicine and under-served populations.
• Resident Teaching Award
  The Resident Teaching Award was established in 2001 to recognize a residency faculty member for excellence in resident teaching.  The award alternates between the Sioux Falls and Rapid City Family Medicine residency programs. Nominations are sought from residents.

Student Awards

• James E. Ryan, MD, Department of Family Medicine Award
  The James E. Ryan MD Department of Family Medicine Award is sponsored by the South Dakota Academy of Family Physicians, underwritten by the James E. Ryan Memorial Scholarship Fund and sanctioned by the Sanford School of Medicine Alumni Relations Council. It is presented to a graduating medical student who has matched with a family medicine residency program, is a student in the top 50% of their class and is a member of the South Dakota American Academy of Family Physicians (SDAFP).
• SAEM Excellence in Emergency Medicine Award
  The Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Excellence in Emergency Medicine Award is made available to each medical school to select a senior medical student who has demonstrated excellence in the specialty of emergency medicine.
• Curtis H. Wait, MD Award
  The Curtis H. Wait, MD Award is presented to a graduating senior who has matched with a South Dakota Family Medicine Residency Program.  The recipient must be a member of the South Dakota American Academy of Family Physicians (SDAFP) and demonstrated acceptable performance in the Department of Family Medicine coursework.
• Oty Kittelson, MD Award
  The Oty Kittelson, MD Award is sponsored by the Sanford Health Foundation and the recipient must be entering a South Dakota Family Medicine Residency Program.
• Dennis and Mary Jo Olson Family Medicine Award
  Sponsored by the Dakota Hospital Foundation, the award recipient must be entering a Family Medicine Residency Program.
• William Dendinger, MD Award
  Sponsored by the Dakota Hospital Foundation, the award recipient must be entering a Family Medicine Residency Program. 
• Resident Teacher Award – Rapid City
  This award is presented to a Family Medicine resident at the Monument Health Rapid City Hospital Family Medicine Residency program for outstanding teaching of patients, medical students and residents. 
• Resident Teacher Award – Sioux Falls
  This award is presented to a Family Medicine resident at the Sioux Falls Family Medicine Residency program for outstanding teaching of patients, medical students and residents.
• FARM Community Project Award
  The FARM Community Project Award is sponsored by the South Dakota Academy of Family Physicians. The intent of the community project is to give back to the host community. Chosen projects are relevant to the communities, with the goal of promoting better health and wellness outcomes for members of the community. Summation of the projects are presented to the faculty and an award is presented for the most outstanding project. 

The annual report highlights the many contributions made by the department faculty in teaching, service and scholarly activities and recognizes those who have received awards, contributed to research and scholarly work, and supported medical students and family medicine residents.  They all have made lasting contributions to Family Medicine and health care in South Dakota.