Christus Spohn Shoreline Hospital’s emergency medicine residency program was recently saved from a planned closure that was slated for 2026, according to MedPage Today. Response from residents, faculty, and local politicians eventually turned the tide on the decision to close the program. After administrators initially announced the program’s termination in October, widespread community support encouraged the county’s commissioners to meet and look for solutions. On December 1, officials approved a 6-year deal, allocating annual funding from the county hospital district’s reserves. The agreement reportedly totals $21.2 million. The 557-bed private hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas, is the leading emergency facility in the area with a level II trauma center and a teaching facility affiliated with the Texas A&M University System Health and Science Center College of Medicine.
Emergency medicine needs a louder voice: With provider shortages, rising numbers of uninsured patients presenting at emergency departments, and recent reports of violence against healthcare workers, many medical students are shying away from emergency medicine. Keeping a program going with funding is one thing, but drawing in residents will be another.