WSU alumni Tom and Linda Nihoul recently donated $250,000 to Pullman Regional Hospital to help fund the WSU Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine Family Medicine Residency Program.

PRH’s fundraising goal for the program is $1.55 million, and they are very close to reaching that goal, said Alison Weigley, PRH director of external relations.

The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education accredited ESFCOM in May, meaning residents can start applying for the program in September, said Christina VerHeul, ESFCOM director of communications.

Residents matching with PRH will be notified in March 2022, and the first class of residents is expected to start the program that summer, she said.

The program lasts three years and has space for three residents each year, Weigley said. 

Program funding will go toward creating a 5,000-square foot educational and clinical space for residents, she said.

The hope behind offering a residency program is to bring in and retain more family medicine practitioners in the region, VerHeul said. 

Dr. Stephen Hall will lead the program, Weigley said. Hall is a family medicine physician who has been practicing for more than 30 years.