Ceres has been without a hospital since the early 1990s, forcing residents to seek medical care in Modesto, Turlock or other neighboring cities. But medical providers are in short supply in the Valley, which is why Sutter Memorial Medical Center in Modesto will be starting a physician residency program starting next year.
The largest hospital in Modesto has received national accreditation this month for internal medicine and family medicine physician residency programs – the first residency tracks in the Valley for Sutter.
“Research shows the Central Valley is among the fastest growing regions of the state with a disproportionately low number of health providers,” said Robert Altman, M.D., president and CEO of Gould Medical Group. “We have tremendous opportunity with these programs to make meaningful differences in the lives of patients and families and further improve community health.”
Sutter officials believe primary care — which includes family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics — is an area of great opportunity. Historically primary care hasn’t attracted as many physicians compared to specialty medicine. A recent study affirmed the primary care workforce is not growing fast enough to meet needs. The study also cited how a lack of access to primary care can lead to health disparities and more chronic health issues.
Recruitment for the resident physicians for both Modesto programs will begin this fall. A total of 39 resident doctors (26 in the internal medicine and 13 in the family medicine) will arrive at Sutter Memorial Medical Center in June 2025.
“We are on pace to become the largest community-based health care training institution in Northern California,” said Dr. Lindsay Mazotti, Sutter Health’s chief medical officer of medical education and science. “We are expanding our graduate medical education footprint to train and graduate 1,000 resident and fellow physicians each year by 2030, and each year thereafter. We are preparing the next generation of caregivers to lead the field in delivering compassionate, equitable and evidence-based care. Focusing on Modesto and the Central Valley allows us to help improve the health of our patients who are in critical need of better health care.”
Sutter teams have worked together to develop and expand orthopedic care, women’s and children’s health, as well as cancer care. Through early detection of health issues, reduction of emergency room visits and hospitalizations, and management and coordination of care for chronic diseases, primary care physicians play a critical role in improving the overall health and quality of life for patients in the community.
“Our community-based residency programs offer a perfect solution to this challenge and represent an important milestone in our goal to meet the diverse care needs of our local communities,” said James Kruer, M.D., who will serve as the program director for the internal medicine residency.
Sutter Memorial Medical Center is a 419-bed hospital and a Level II trauma center that provides 24-hour emergency care, inpatient and outpatient surgery, obstetrics, pediatrics, nuclear medicine, dialysis therapy, diagnostic imaging, intensive care and physical therapy. The medical center is a stroke center, and HealthGrades ranks it among America’s 50 Best Hospitals for overall clinical quality and vascular surgery, as well as among “America’s 100 Best Hospitals” overall the last four years in a row.
“Our medical center will offer an exceptional training environment for up-and-coming resident physicians,” said Tracy Roman, CEO of Sutter Memorial Medical Center. “Alongside knowledgeable, experienced physicians and care teams, they will gain invaluable insight into what it means to become a skilled and compassionate care provider.”
“One of the larger goals of our graduate medical education programs is to have our residents and fellows reflect the diversity of the patients we serve,” said Raeleigh Payanes, M.D., who will oversee family medicine resident physicians as their program director. “We look forward to welcoming some of the best and brightest minds next summer, who will come from all walks of life and bring their unique experiences, to help compassionately care for those here in the Central Valley.”
