About a year ago, four pediatric residents arrived in Reno, Nevada, to join the first class in a three-year pilot program run jointly by the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med) and Renown Health. This July, the next group of four recently graduated medical students will join the program, and the state will Building a pipeline of much-needed pediatric physiciansWe provide high-quality, affordable care to vulnerable children and families, especially in underserved and rural areas.
“It’s been such an amazing year watching this program grow, seeing all of our new residents pass and hearing how happy they are. It’s been so rewarding,” said Dr. Natalie Nessler, a fourth-year chief resident during the program’s first year.
Residency is a training program where newly graduated physicians gain experience in a particular medical field. It is required to obtain a medical license in the United States and plays a key role in where physicians decide to live and practice. Association of American Medical CollegesMore than 50% of practicing physicians remain in the state where they completed their training.
Recruiting physicians is crucial to solving the physician shortage in Nevada, which ranks 45th in active physicians per 100,000 people, 48th in primary care physicians per 100,000 people, and 49th in general surgeons per 100,000 people. UNR Med Office of Statewide InitiativesHowever, more than three in four physicians who completed their undergraduate and graduate medical education, including residency training, in Nevada are actively practicing in the state.
Despite continued population growth, Washoe County has only 71 licensed pediatricians, but UNR Med and Renown’s pediatric residency programs are set to recruit 12 residents in 2026, representing at least a 17% increase in pediatricians in the area once the programs reach capacity.
“Our new pediatric residency program marks a major step forward for the UNR Med/Renown Health partnership and for our entire community,” said Paul Hauptman, MD, dean of UNR Med. In the previous interview“This advances our mutual commitment to recruit and retain skilled, compassionate physicians and health care professionals, improve access to care, and invest in clinical research that improves the health of this and future generations.”
“I’m just grateful that this opportunity has come to fruition and that we’re all here together and doing good for the community by being here as residents,” said Dr. Megan Dinges, a first-year resident.
The program’s 2023-2024 cohort included six physicians: first-year residents Dr. Dinges, Jason Lundy, Krista Lantsford, and Erin Wepley, as well as second-year resident Dr. Gianni Perano and chief resident Dr. Nessler.
“I’ve really enjoyed this program, mainly because everyone is so great, from my fellow residents to the faculty and staff,” says Dr. Lundy. “It’s been a great learning environment. I enjoy our patient population, and I enjoy living and working here in Reno.”
Residents train and practise in Northern Nevada and complete a primary care focused clinical program that includes inpatient and outpatient rotations caring for children. The program includes all ACGME-mandated rotations, weekly lectures, seminars and skill-building initiatives.
“Starting residency is a big jump in itself, as it’s a big jump from being a student to supervising others,” Dr. Dinges said. “I was a little nervous at first, but that quickly disappeared as I began working with the faculty, nurses, and students.”
For Dr. Lantsford, the anxiety stemmed from moving to Reno, a city he’d never visited.
“I thought it was just a desert,” she says, “but there are trees, and it’s beautiful, and it gets a lot less rain than Washington state, so I love it.”
Dr. Wepley said joining the program as part of the first group of residents gave him significantly more flexibility than joining an existing program.
“The short time between when feedback is given and when they act on it allows them to adapt much more quickly than we’ve seen in many other programs,” Dr. Wepley said.
Dinges said the leadership team regularly checks in with all residents to ask “what’s working, what’s not working, what can we improve,” and solicits input on how to shape the program for the better and take it to the next level.
Drs. Dinges, Lundy, Lantsford and Wepley are fresh out of medical school and joined the program as first-year residents, while Dr. Perano will complete his family medicine residency at UNR Med in 2023 and will join the program as a first-year pediatric resident before being promoted to his second year in January 2024. Like the other residents, he highlighted the benefits of the UNR Med-Renown affiliation.
“This has brought even more resources to both Renown and UNR,” Dr. Perano said, citing additional learning opportunities and guidance afforded by the partnership.
Several residents say the program helped them rethink their goals for pediatric work and establish their passion for the field. Dr. Dinges originally wanted to specialize in obstetrics and has been able to apply that interest to her work in pediatrics.
“I think the reason I listed women’s health care as one of my interests in my résumé was because I originally wanted to work in adolescent female health care,” Dr. Dinges says, “But then I gradually realized that I loved talking to new moms. That kind of flipped a switch for me.”
It’s the patients that turn the trainees on. Working with a population that had little access to pediatric care gave them an immediate impact on the job. Making people feel safe, helping them develop healthy habits and helping kids succeed is what motivates them to continue in their work.
“I went into pediatrics because I wanted kids to be well and I wanted to help take care of them,” says Dr. Wepley. “Nevada needs more pediatricians, but it takes an entire community to make sure kids thrive.”
Learn more about pediatric residency programs