WWAMI School of Medicine offers collaborative learning, community health care in Alaska

Alaska is rich with career technical education opportunities, and for students who want to move onto post-secondary education, there are many programs for students to choose, from welding and construction to nursing and dental assistant pathways. However, one important subject that is missing from post-secondary programs is Medical School.

The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) has been working to bridge the gap for students interested in pursuing careers as physicians with the WWAMI School of Medical Education.

WWAMI is a collaboration among 6 universities in five northwestern states—Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho—and the In partnership with the University of Washington School of Medicine. UAA is the Alaska regional site for WWAMI School of Medicine, a collaborative, high-quality medical school with a focus on community health care that has trained more than 500 physicians and surgeons since 1971.

“If not for WWAMI, I might not have gone to medical school,” says WWAMI student Ian Richey, who is in his 3rd year of Medical School. The Wasilla resident recently completed a clerkship with the Family Medicine at Benteh Nuutah Valley Native Primary Care Center.

“Having family support is absolutely important, being able to go home and spend time with them. UW Medical School was the only school I wanted. Through WWAMI, it offers the same opportunity to learn as Seattle, taught here in Alaska, but it also does present the opportunity to travel to learn.”

WWAMI allows students to spend the first 18 months of the program at UAA, taking foundational courses and learning basic clinical skills in local clinics and hospitals. Students then begin their clinicals, which students have the option to choose to spend in clinics and hospitals across Alaska or throughout the five-state WWAMI region. All students are required to spend a minimum of eight to 12 weeks in Seattle at University of Washington hospitals.

“I had to fight for the Alaska track because there are a limited number of clerkships, but I believe it is important to have the different perspectives. You have the ability to go to different states, engage in different types of healthcare, and come back here to practice what you’ve learned.” He says that working and learning in the different areas offers exposure to rural, urban, small communities, and bigger cities that aren’t found in other programs. “It is all about how can I connect with the patients, how can I best help the patients.”

At UAA, WWAMI is proud to offer both the Doctor of Medicine program in partnership with the University of Washington, as well as a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Pre-Medical Studies to prepare students for medical school.

Ritchey, a former paramedic in the Mat-Su Borough, says his at Benteh Nuutah provided him invaluable experiences, working with a diverse population over a wide area.

“You work with everyone, from Midwives, Pediatricians, Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, to Doctors. The teams communicate every day to come up with treatment plans. They really treated me as part of the team. They work hard and they care.”

He says another benefit to the program is the smaller class sizes, which allow for more interaction with different students, studying and working with each other, even if they have different learning styles, sharing information and experiences, and who could well be future colleagues.

“This has been a wonderful opportunity for me, to live in Alaska and be with my family, but also have the really unique aspect of having the different instructors and specialists teaching us. This is a great place to learn,” says Ritchey.

WWAMI School of Medical Education will be hosting their 15th Alaska Pre-Med Summit on Saturday, March 30th on the UAA Campus at Rasmuson Hall. The summit starts at 9:00 a.m. and will allow prospective students to interact with professors and students, ask questions during breakouts, and get tips on the application process.

The event is free and includes a light breakfast and lunch and is open to anyone that would like to learn more about advanced degrees and careers in Medicine, including, but not limited to prospective high school students, undergraduate students, post-bac students or non-traditional students, parents, guidance counselors and advisors.

For more information and free registration, please visit uaa.alaska.edu/premed