Contact: Caroline Cornish | caroline.cornish@mainehealth.org
PORTLAND, Maine – Fourth-year medical students in the Tufts University School of Medicine – MaineHealth Maine Medical Center (TUSM-MHMMC) Maine Track program celebrated “Match Day” in Portland on Friday, learning which residency program they’ll be joining for the next three to seven years. Every one of the 41 Maine Track students in this year’s class matched to a high-quality program, and 11 of them found out they would be staying in Portland as residents at MaineHealth Maine Medical Center.
Match Day is the culmination of the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) that fourth-year medical students use to enter their next stage of training. Students apply to residency programs in the fall, and programs interview those they’re interested in. Students then rank the residencies, with the program that they would most like to join at the top, and residency programs enter a ranked list of students. The NRMP matches students and programs, and on Match Day, students find out their residency “match.” This is the third year that Maine Track students opened the envelopes containing their match with family and friends in Portland. Previously, they joined other Tufts students in Boston for the celebration.
“It is so exciting to see all my hard work come to fruition,” said Joshua Parbs, M25, who learned he matched with MaineHealth Maine Medical Center. “I felt all the emotions at once. I’m really looking forward to diving into pediatrics and becoming a doctor.”
The Maine Track program is a partnership between MHMMC Portland and Tufts formed 17 years ago to help address the shortage of doctors in Maine, provide financial assistance to aspiring medical students from Maine and develop an innovative curriculum focused on community-based education. Students receive classroom instruction in Boston before coming to Maine for hands-on training. To date, 439 physicians have graduated from the Maine Track Program. 85 graduates known to have completed their training are now practicing physicians in Maine.
“Every physician has a distinct memory of their Match Day,” said Dr. Dena Whitesell, assistant dean for students in the TUSM-MHMMC Maine Track program. “It is a big moment for doctors professionally and personally, and it’s always wonderful to see the support our students receive from their families, friends and mentors as they find out where they’ll be taking the next step in their careers.”
14 students in the Maine Track class of 2025 matched to primary care residencies. MaineHealth also filled all of its categorical residency programs and 3 rural tracks.
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About MaineHealth
MaineHealth is a not-for-profit, integrated health system whose vision is, “Working together so our communities are the healthiest in America,” and is committed to a mission of providing high-quality affordable care, educating tomorrow's caregivers and researching better ways to provide care. MaineHealth includes a Level 1 trauma medical center, eight additional licensed hospitals, comprehensive pediatric care services, an extensive behavioral health care network, diagnostic services as well as home health, hospice and senior care services. With more than 2,000 employed providers and approximately 23,000 care team members, MaineHealth provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. MaineHealth hospitals include MaineHealth Behavioral Health at Spring Harbor in Westbrook, MaineHealth Franklin Hospital in Farmington, MaineHealth Lincoln Hospital in Damariscotta, MaineHealth Maine Medical Center in Portland, Biddeford and Sanford, MaineHealth Memorial Hospital in North Conway, N.H., MaineHealth Mid Coast Hospital in Brunswick, MaineHealth Pen Bay Hospital in Rockport, MaineHealth Stephens Hospital in Norway and MaineHealth Waldo Hospital in Belfast. MaineHealth also includes the MaineHealth Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland, MaineHealth Behavioral Health in Westbrook, MaineHealth Home Health and Hospice in Saco, the MaineHealth Institute for Research in Scarborough, the MaineHealth Medical Group and MaineHealth NorDx in Scarborough. MaineHealth affiliates include MaineGeneral Health in Augusta and Waterville and St. Mary's Health System in Lewiston. It is also a significant stakeholder in the MaineHealth Accountable Care Organization in Portland and a joint venture partner in the New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Portland.