(From left to right): 2018 HMS Family Medicine Residency Program graduate, Brandon Ferguson, MD, Dan Otero, HMS Chief Executive Officer, and 2018 HMS Family Medicine Residency Program graduate, Neel Patel, MD.Silver City, NM — Hidalgo Medical Services (HMS) recognized Neel Patel, MD, Family Medicine Physician, and Brandon Ferguson, MD, Family Medicine Physician, on their graduation from the HMS Family Medicine Residency Program (FMRP). Heavy refreshments, live music, and a formal event took place Saturday, June 23, 2018 from 2:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Bear Mountain Lodge in Silver City to celebrate the special occasion.

Current HMS Family Medicine Residency Program graduates, staff, and participants (From left to right): James T. Shen, MD, Brandon Ferguson, MD, Neel Patel, MD, Darrick Nelson, MD, Susan Bauer, DO, Virginia Hernandez, MD, Pedro Armendariz, MD, and Amanda Castillo (missing Roberto Aguero, MD, Rory Keys, MD, and Mason Heywood, MD).New Mexico State Representative, Rodolpho "Rudy" Martinez, speaks to the audience at the 2018 HMS Family Medicine Residency Program graduation event at Bear Mountain Lodge."Congratulations to both Doctor Patel and Doctor Ferguson on their graduation. We wish them the very best in this next chapter of their lives and careers as physicians," stated Darrick Nelson, MD, HMS Chief Medical Officer and Director of the FMRP. Nelson added, "The Family Medicine Resident Physicians at HMS serve our patients and our rural community in a very important role during their training at HMS."

The HMS FMRP is accredited through the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and provides quality training to family medicine residency physicians. The HMS FMRP has been recognized since July 2013 as the state of New Mexico's first teaching health center and is a 1+2 residency program. First year program residents complete their first year in a larger academic medical center, and then complete their second and third years on-site at HMS. Upon completion of his service with HMS, Patel will work as a full-time physician with an organization associated with Carolinas Healthcare System closer to his family on the East Coast this fall. Ferguson has formally committed to working as a permanent, full-time physician with HMS in Grant County, beginning in July 2018.

A roomful of HMS FMRP academic and community partners, including New Mexico State Representative, Rodolpho "Rudy" Martinez, HMS health care providers, and the organization's senior leadership and staff, attended the event. Both Dr. Patel's and Dr. Ferguson's family members and friends were also in attendance. Tsering Sherpa, MD, was selected and recognized by current resident physicians as the HMS FMRP Community Volunteer Faculty of the Year.

Before presenting the graduates with their awards, Dan Otero, HMS Chief Executive Officer, recognized local, regional, and state organizations and individuals as important contributors to the HMS FMRP. Otero stated, "There are so many community partners, community health care physicians, and allied health professionals who help make the HMS Family Medicine Residency Program such a success." He individually recognized over 34 organizations and approximately 45 health care providers that make up the collaborative community-based training program and prepare the next generation of Family Medicine physicians who will be serving patients in New Mexico or other healthcare organizations around the country. Otero added, "This program's – and its graduates' – continued achievements directly reflect the vital role that HMS plays in Hidalgo and Grant counties' health care community. The HMS FMRP is a true testament to the HMS Board of Directors' commitment to our organizational mission and reflects Dr. Nelson's leadership and commitment to providing quality health care and education."

For more information regarding the HMS Family Medicine Residency Program, please contact Amanda Castillo, HMS Family Medicine Residency Program Coordinator, at (575) 597-2744. Please visit www.hmsnm.org to learn more about HMS services, providers, and locations.