Rural doctor project LOCALHERO - first students from Witten in practice

Next Monday, the time has finally come - the first placement in a rural doctor's surgery! 25 students from Witten/Herdecke University are starting their one-week internship in just as many general practices as part of the LOCALHERO project. Students at other NRW locations also start their internship in rural medical practices. Unlike other "rural doctor" projects, LOCALHERO aims to get prospective doctors interested in the topic while they are still studying and to identify factors that will keep young doctors in the region in the long term. It is funded by the Federal Ministry of Health with 1.7 million euros and is being carried out as a joint project with the universities of Duisburg-Essen, Bochum, Düsseldorf and Witten/Herdecke.

The enthusiasm for living and working in the countryside is intended to counteract the shortage of doctors in the regions participating in the project. Even though we have more doctors today than ever before, the density of care is declining in many rural parts of the country. With LOCALHERO, an innovative teaching concept was developed for the theoretical part of the course, which is supplemented with many different practical experiences as well as an accompanying programme run by the respective districts, thus guaranteeing students a comprehensive insight into working as a rural doctor.

Students, patients and practices in rural areas benefit equally

Dr Lucas Bisplinghoff reports that the districts in particular are delighted with the new generation of doctors. The general practitioner is himself a GP in private practice and supervises the project on behalf of the Institute of General Practice and Primary Care at Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H). "In many conversations with the districts, I have experienced an immense desire and willingness to make rural life as appealing as possible to young doctors. From secure local mobility with e-bikes to visits to well-known sights or planned events in the communities, everything is included," says Bisplinghoff. The participating districts in which the Witten students are now gaining practical experience include Soest, Olpe, Märkischer Kreis and Hochsauerlandkreis.

The students are also looking forward to their experiences in the countryside and are also allowed to make many of their own suggestions within the project, which should make the degree programme, which is already very practice-oriented at the UW/H, even more attractive. The project has also enabled many new teaching practices to be recruited in areas that otherwise have no connection to university education. The teaching physicians thus also benefit from the focus on rural areas and can take advantage of a wide range of free training courses at the UW/H and become more involved in university teaching. Last but not least, local patients should ultimately benefit from the reinforcement of young doctors, as the project aims to ensure functioning GP care for them in the future.

The LOCALHERO project (longitudinal curriculum in general practice to strengthen GP care in rural regions) started in January 2022 and will run until the end of 2024. Further groups with a planned size of 50 to 75 students per year will follow over the next two years.