Building a community of practice in rural medical education: growing our own together

Randall Longenecker

qualifications: MD

contribution: original concept, literature review, wrote the first draft, designed the project

position: Assistant Dean Rural and Underserved Programs

United States

Randall Longenecker, MD, is Assistant Dean Emeritus and Professor of Family Medicine, Rural and Underserved Programs at the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, in Athens, Ohio. He practiced as a family physician in western Ohio from 1982 to 2012 and was Program Director of The Ohio State University Rural Program family medicine residency/rural training track from 1997- 2011. At Ohio University he developed the Rural and Urban Scholars Pathways program to prepare students for practice in rural and underserved urban communities. He was the founding Executive Director of The RTT Collaborative, a non-profit devoted to sustaining health professions education in rural places. Since retirement in 2021 he continues research, advising, and writing on the topic of rural medical education, curriculum and program design, and implementation.

Prof David Schmitz

qualifications: MD

contribution: designed the project, contributed to drafts

position: Chair, Department of Family and Community Medicine

United States

Professor and Chair, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences. 2017 President, National Rural Health Association. Family physician with research interests in medical education, workforce studies and rural health care.