Section 137.38 Education and Training of Primary Care Physicians

MINNESOTA STATUTES AND CODES

Section 137.38 Education and Training of Primary Care Physicians

137.38 EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIANS.

Subdivision 1.Condition.

If the Board of Regents accepts the amount transferred under section 62J.692, subdivision 7, paragraph (b), to be used for the purposes described in sections 137.38 to 137.40, it shall comply with the duties for which the transfer is made.

Subd. 2.Primary care.

For purposes of sections 137.38 to 137.40, "primary care" means a type of medical care delivery that assumes ongoing responsibility for the patient in both health maintenance and illness treatment. It is personal care involving a unique interaction and communication between the patient and the physician. It is comprehensive in scope, and includes all the overall coordination of the care of the patient's health care problems including biological, behavioral, and social problems. The appropriate use of consultants and community resources is an important aspect of effective primary care. Primary care physicians include family practitioners, general pediatricians, and general internists.

Subd. 3.Goals.

The Board of Regents of the University of Minnesota, through the University of Minnesota Medical School, is requested to implement the initiatives required by sections 137.38 to 137.40 in order to increase the number of graduates of residency programs of the medical school who practice primary care by 20 percent over an eight-year period. The initiatives must be designed to encourage newly graduated primary care physicians to establish practices in areas of rural and urban Minnesota that are medically underserved.

Subd. 4.Grants.

The Board of Regents is requested to seek grants from private foundations and other nonstate sources, including community provider organizations, for the medical school initiatives outlined in sections 137.38 to 137.40.