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Mississippi College Physician Assistant Students Attending Rural Health Conference


Mississippi College physician assistant student Lauren Foy

Mississippi’s rates of heart disease, diabetes and obesity are among the worst in the nation from one year to the next.

Given those grim statistics, a Jackson conference on October 21 exploring rural healthcare issues will attract graduate students from Mississippi College and other area institutions. They will be focused on thinking about a comprehensive approach to confront longstanding medical problems in the region.

Open to the public, the two-hour program at the Jackson Medical Mall begins at 5:30 p.m. The event will be held at the mall’s University of Mississippi Medical Center Conference Center. The event is free.

Three physician assistant students from the Clinton campus are invited to participate at the Rural Interdisciplinary Case Experience Bowl.

Dubbed the RICE Bowl, the event will bring together a diverse pool of Mississippi graduate students. It is designed to encourage them to think comprehensively to provide the greatest quality care to a population that’s often underserved.

The RICE Bowl will be represented by a dozen academic disciplines, including business, dentistry, psychology, public health, social work, pharmacy, nursing, medicine, law and MC’s physician assistant program based at the Baptist Healthplex. P.A. students are trained to become professionals working under the supervision of physicians.

“This is a great opportunity to show the medical community, especially here in Mississippi, how important the role of a physician assistant is,” says Mississippi College P.A. student Lauren Foy of Niceville, Florida. “I know that participating in the Rice Bowl will help me become a better practitioner and allow me to better serve my community.”

Carly Yelverton, an MC physician assistant student from Clinton, looks forward to the experience. “I hope to learn about other professions and how to best solve problems and think critically as a team,” adds the Mississippi College graduate.

Sarah Joanna Mason, an MC physician assistant student from Ridgeland, is participating because of her interest in rural medicine’s challenges.

“It is critical for those living some distance from major metropolitan areas to be able to see health providers” in a timely manner, says Mason, a University of Southern Mississippi graduate. A great deal of health education and treatment, she said, should be provided at a small town clinic.