Fund WSU for rural health

As the chief executive of MultiCare Health System’s Inland Northwest region, I am responsible for Deaconess Hospital, Valley Hospital and Rockwood Clinic. We see every day the critical need for more access to health services and more health care providers to meet the needs of our communities.

The Inland Northwest includes rural and semi-rural counties, some with 10 or fewer physicians per 10,000 people. This lack of physicians exacerbates health care disparities and puts the community’s health at risk.

Washington State University’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine will help this region be able to better meet the needs of families through their work to grow the next generation of physicians and to partner with health care providers in the state.

We must support this work. Funding for the college’s third- and fourth-year medical students, and for 20 more students starting with the fall 2019 class, is a strategic investment in the health and well-being of the Inland Northwest region. I urge the governor and Legislature to help us make real progress in resolving the health care needs of Washington.

David O’Brien, MD, MS, Senior Vice President and Chief Executive MultiCare Health System – Inland Northwest Region

Spokane