$10 million grant awarded to the health system to help address the critical need for physicians in Georgia

St. Joseph’s/Candler will begin a new physician residency program in 2027 aimed at bolstering the critical need for doctors in southeast Georgia and the state.

This represents a natural expansion for the largest health system in the region, which for years has been reaching into underserved areas to bring top-quality healthcare and technology closer to where people live and work.

This new residency program will initially be backed by a $10 million grant from the state of Georgia to assist with the startup costs of the program.

The two initial tracks of the new residency program will focus on the vital need for primary care physicians: Internal Medicine and Family Medicine. There will be a total of 48 residency slots at capacity. It will expand to other residencies, such as cardiology fellowship, increasing the number of residents to 60.

“This is a sentinel moment for St. Joseph’s/Candler to offer a residency program, the final and most important step in a physician’s education,” said Paul P. Hinchey, President & CEO of St. Joseph’s/Candler. “That is when a physician really hones his or her skills and commits to their chosen specialty. The health system has a wealth of experienced and expertly-trained physicians that can guide these new doctors into exceptional clinicians. We believe this program will make a significant dent in the doctor shortage Georgia is facing, incentivizing these physicians to stay in Georgia, giving our patients better access to care. I want to thank Speaker of the House Jon Burns, Chairman Butch Parrish and the whole Chatham County delegation for securing this grant to help SJ/C bring this important program to our community and our state.”

The future vision for this residency program is to have 60-70 resident slots a year across other medical specialties that are in high demand.

“Creating a physician residency program at St. Joseph’s/Candler is a historic step forward for healthcare in Georgia,” said Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns. “The House remains committed to increasing access to quality, affordable healthcare across the state—and that includes strengthening our healthcare workforce. This $10 million grant awarded to St. Joseph’s/Candler will help us move forward with our mission to educate more providers. St. Joseph’s/Candler’s partnership with our great state, and in particular Southeast Georgia, ensures we are able to attract, train, and retain the best and brightest to practice here in Georgia. These incredible accomplishments would not be possible without the dedication of leaders like Chairman Butch Parrish and Paul P. Hinchey who tirelessly champion healthcare initiatives in communities throughout the state.”

"The Georgia House has consistently led the way to pass measures that expand access to quality, affordable healthcare in every corner of our great state," said Georgia State Representative Butch Parrish. "Attracting, training, and retaining a skilled medical workforce is a critical part of that work. These programs in Savannah at St. Joseph's/Candler, the new dental school, and the new medical school will all be great partners in helping Georgia secure more healthcare providers to practice where their services are needed most."

The Medical College of Georgia launched a new four-year medical school in 2024 and a new dental school has been announced, both located on the campus of Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong campus.

Hinchey added, “We are very grateful for the support of our local delegation, who backed this grant and were instrumental in helping move this project forward. Senator Ben Watson put in the grant funding in that chamber and we had the pleasure of meeting with each legislator individually. They were all very excited to help. Each one of them, in their own way, worked to ensure that this residency program came to life.”

The Legislature appropriated the funds and St. Joseph’s/Candler applied for a grant from the Georgia Board of Healthcare Workforce. St. Joseph’s/Candler was then awarded the $10 million grant through a competitive process.

Through a nation-wide search, Dr. John Cinicola has been hired to be the program director for the new residency program. Dr. Cinicola was previously the Medical Director for Internal Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

St. Joseph’s/Candler anticipates the program will receive accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and see its first round of residents by July 1, 2027. 

WHAT IS A RESIDENCY PROGRAM?

A physician residency program is a post-graduate training program. Doctors who have just graduated from four years of medical school enter a nation-wide matching program for placement in residency programs. With the experience and skill of the physicians at St. Joseph’s/Candler, the system expects to be very competitive in the matching process.

Residents get supervised clinical training from experienced “attending” doctors who have worked at St. Joseph’s/Candler for years. Residents will have access to cutting-edge technology, a diverse patient population, and mentorship from these experienced physicians.

One of the strengths of this new residency program at St. Joseph’s/Candler is the long-standing collaboration with the Medical College of Georgia. For more than a decade, third- and fourth-year students have completed rotations in the system and last year MCG opened a full, four-year campus in Savannah.

 “The mission of Augusta University and the Medical College of Georgia is to improve people’s lives and one way we do that is by ensuring people have access to the best health care possible, no matter their zip code,” said Dr. Russell T. Keen, president of Augusta University.  “If we want more doctors to stay and serve Georgia’s communities, we have to train them here. Expanding graduate medical education represents a commitment to the health of our state. I am thankful to Paul P. Hinchey for understanding and stepping up to fill that commitment and the Georgia General Assembly for allocating the funding for additional residencies.”

“The Medical College of Georgia has the fourth largest medical school class size in the nation – but without expanded graduate medical education (GME) opportunities, our state continues to be a net exporter of medical students,” said MCG Dean David Hess, MD. “Georgia currently ranks 40th nationally in medical residents per capita, which demonstrates the tremendous need to grow our GME programs. St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System, particularly Paul P. Hinchey, has been a valued partner in educating our students for nearly 15 years. Their support made it possible to launch our third four-year campus in Savannah just last year, and this new residency program will be a critical step in ensuring more MCG graduates stay in Georgia to complete their training and eventually practice.”

WHAT IS AT STAKE?

Georgia does not have enough doctors, particularly primary care doctors. Only three out of Georgia’s 159 counties have the recommended amount of primary care doctors, according to the federal Health Resources and Services Administration. About a third of Georgians, or 3.3 million, live in an area with a primary care shortage, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Georgia’s population is both growing and aging, creating even more problems with access to physicians.

For more than a decade, physicians at St. Joseph’s/Candler have trained medical students who performed clinical rotations through the health system.

“This residency program is a fantastic development for our community and the health system,” said Dr. Spencer Adoff and Dr. Brian Raj, Chiefs of Staff at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Candler Hospital. “We have many highly-trained and experienced doctors who are excited to become attending physicians and mold the future of health care in Savannah and Georgia.”

During the last decade St. Joseph’s/Candler has made expanding access to healthcare a priority, creating new medical campuses in Pooler, Bryan County, Bluffton and practices in Liberty County, Wayne County and Bulloch County. With more physicians entering the profession, the system will be able to serve even more patients.

“When residency is over, many doctors will choose to stay near the area,” Hinchey said. “With the new St. Joseph’s/Candler residency program, we can keep more doctors in Southeast Georgia and give our patients better access to care. This is a win for our entire state and we are grateful and proud of the support of our state leadership in this endeavor. We are committed to making this a competitive and highly sought-after program for new physicians.”