A new era of health-care education in southern Alberta started Monday. The Southern Alberta Medical Program (SAMP) at the University of Lethbridge held its first day of class. Soon, doctors trained in southern Alberta will be practising physicians. Twenty students make up the first cohort in the program’s history. “It’s been an amazing journey. Back in May of 2024, when we had our first sort of kickoff event, it felt still very academic and almost like it wasn’t going to happen. And then back in December, when the first team was hired, it still felt almost like this day was long in the future,” said SAMP associate dean Rick Buck. The program is being offered as a partnership between the University of Lethbridge and the University of Calgary. Students will receive a U of C MD upon graduation. But by training in Lethbridge, students will be more likely to start their careers locally. “I felt this was a really great opportunity to bring students from Day 1 of medical school into these rural and regional environments to carry through their medical school. And so, I think it’s a really great opportunity also for faculty to be involved in education,” said Ashley Rommens, director of faculty development and experiences for SAMP. Before SAMP’s launch, students interested in studying medicine needed to go to larger cities. With a medical school now in Lethbridge, local students have the chance to study close to home. “Hearing that the program, the SAMP program, was opening up, it just felt like a more attainable way of achieving a medical degree,” said SAMP student and Lethbridge native Lucas Proulx. It also offers a unique opportunity for students already interested in working in a rural community. Several instructors and faculty members are practising physicians from small towns in the region. “I think we’re going to have really great learning opportunities to be one-on-one with preceptors and patients early on that you might not have the opportunity to do in a city, which I think really accurately reflects what it’s like to be a doctor in a smaller area and to just have those kinds of relationships with people in areas like Lethbridge,” said medical student Erin Walker, who originally hails from Cold Lake. The medical program takes three years to complete. The U of L is planning to expand its next cohort of students to 30.
