Temple Medical Students Benefit From New Primary Care Mentorship Program Like many schools, Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine has had to make adjustments to this year’s curriculum in response to COVID-19. In the past, SE PA AHEC has partnered with Temple to coordinate an in-person primary care clinical experience for M2 students that highlighted the benefits of working in primary care and the variety of settings in which primary care providers work. This year SE PA AHEC coordinated with Temple University to facilitate a socially distant Primary Care Speaker Panel series and create an optional mentorship program for select students highly motivated to go into primary care. Twenty-one students were paired with primary care mentors who work in a wide variety of settings in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Student Eric Gramszlo was paired with Dr. Mary Wirshup, Medical Director at Community Volunteers In Medicine. Eric met with Dr. Wirshup in person at CVIM and had this to say about his mentorship experience: Working with Dr. Wirshup at Community Volunteers in Medicine reaffirmed my plan to practice primary care. I saw how crucial it is to develop longitudinal relationships with both communities and individual patients. This is taken seriously at CVIM, where long-term patients treat Dr. Wirshup as a friend or even family. We hear a lot about how important high-quality primary care is, but that goes beyond the basics we learn in school of performing a good physical exam and following the appropriate guidelines. Patients need a primary care provider that will work with them, look out for them, and assist them in navigating our increasingly complicated healthcare system. That's the kind of care that CVIM is providing, and the kind of practice that I hope to have someday soon.
Dr. Wirshup has expressed appreciation for the program as well, saying “[t]he program is so important because Temple med students need to experience the fabulous joy and potential of primary care before they make their mind up about their future specialty. They also have spent 1 ½ years primarily studying and it is wonderful to be with patients and remember why they chose medicine." In addition to observing the clinical side of Dr. Wirshup’s primary care work, Eric got a sample of the benefits that come with long-term relationships many providers have with their patients: “when a patient dropped off dinner for me...I shared it with him to bring home and I laughed and said that ‘special relationship with the patient’ is what makes family practice so wonderful." SE PA AHEC and Temple University faculty hope to continue this program into the future and look forward to recruiting more mentors in the region. If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please email Christine Polit at cpolit@sepaahec.org. | 
