Family Medicine Residency – Big Stone Gap

Lonesome Pine residency group photo

Residency at Lonesome Pine Hospital

Big Stone Gap Family Medicine Residency logo The Family Medicine Residency at Lonesome Pine Hospital gives residents the opportunity to train in rural community hospitals, as well as larger city settings across beautiful Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee. This program gives residents a wide range of training opportunities through one-on-one experience with attending physicians. 

Working in a rural community means you’ll have a diverse group of patients with unique health care needs. When your residency training is completed, you’ll be well prepared to serve any community and care for diverse populations as a licensed physician. 

Watch the video below to learn more about our program’s offerings and hear what the residents themselves have to say about their experience at the Lonesome Pine Family Medicine Residency. 

“Our program sets a strong foundation in Family Medicine but allows you to focus on your career goals with great mentorship from the faculty and staff, which always have your best interests in mind.” 

– Dr. Laura Hernandez-Cruz, PGY-3

About our residency program

Deciding the next steps in your career isn't easy, so we want to share all of the unique opportunities this program has to offer. In addition to being a great place to work, there's plenty to discover in this mountain community. 

Salary & benefits

We are committed to providing our residents with competitive salaries, educational support, and an extensive range of benefits to ensure their well-being and professional growth. Take a look at this residency’s salary and benefits.

Curriculum

Our 36-month training program includes core rotations in both outpatient and inpatient settings, primary care and specialty care. Inpatient and critical care training occurs at Bristol Regional Medical Center, a 288-bed facility that offers Level II trauma care, ICU, critical care and a variety of acute services.

Our curriculum allows you to design your residency training so it aligns with your career goals, whether your plans are for fellowship, hospitalist medicine or outpatient medicine. Some graduates of our program have gone on to attend fellowship training in emergency medicine, geriatrics and sports medicine.

We value people that learn and train with us. Nearly 70% of our program’s graduates made the decision to continue working for Ballad Health in either a hospital or outpatient setting. 

Rotation & training locations

As a resident, you will work in a rural setting for primary care training, while also gaining invaluable experience from larger hospitals. In addition to your work at Lonesome Pine Hospital, you'll have the opportunity to work and diversify your experience at these other hospitals:

Learn more about the curriculum.

Affiliation & accreditation

The Lonesome Pine Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

Lonesome Pine Hospital serves as a core site for the medical students of Lincoln Memorial University DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine and the University of Pikeville Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Students who would like to secure an audition rotation with Lonesome Pine Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program must complete the Audition Rotation Application. Shadowing opportunities are available.

Leadership & current residents

Take a moment and get to know who you'll be learning from and working with in the Lonesome Pine Hospital Family Medicine Residency.

Additional program information

  • Continuity – Continuity training for patients of all ages, from birth to geriatrics, as well as obstetric patients, occurs longitudinally across all 3 years of training. Residents will establish a panel of pediatric and adult patients they follow during course of their residency. Residents will have OB continuity patients they follow throughout all stages of pregnancy, including delivery and post-natal care.
  • Home visits – Residents will provide home visits for qualified patients of our Family Medicine Residency Clinic.
  • Volunteer opportunities – A variety of community volunteer opportunities includes sports physical clinics, congregate meal services, free community-based clinics and health fairs. Our community partners include The Health Wagon and Mountain Empire Older Citizens.
  • Robust didactic curriculum – Resident didactics is held every Tuesday morning from 8 a.m.–noon and is required for all family medicine residents. Didactic curriculum includes AAFP board review series, Journal Club, morbidity and mortality review, billing and coding practices, physician wellness, patient safety, OMT, etc.
  • Physician mentor program – Each resident are paired up with a core faculty member upon entering the program. Physician mentors provide support for residents throughout their training, including research, quality improvement projects, board preparation, work life balance and more.

Availability & how to apply

Lonesome Pine Hospital offers six openings per year for new residents.

Applicants for the Lonesome Pine Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program must use ERAS to apply. Our program ID is 2216120C0.

Criteria for eligibility

  • Three letters of reference written within past 2 years
  • Dean’s letter (MSPE)
  • COMLEX/USMLE step 1/2/PE or CE
  • Medical school transcript (LCME/COCA)
  • Curriculum vitae (CV) and/or personal statement
  • All applications will be reviewed, but preference will be given to those who have graduated from medical school within the past 8 years and have relevant clinical experience within last 2 years
  • Applications will only be accepted through ERAS
  • ECFMG certificate (if applicable)
  • Application end date is last week of December (TBD)
  • NO visas can be sponsored at this time

  • Three current letters of reference from preceptors aware of clinical skills (must be current – within two years – with preference for the most recent)
  • Dean’s letter (MSPE)
  • Passing scores from COMLEX/USMLE step 1 and 2 (preference for step 3) and CE or PE
  • Medical school transcript
  • All applications will be reviewed, but preference will be given to those who have graduated from medical school within the past 8 years and have relevant clinical experience within last 2 years
  • Curriculum vitae (CV) and/or personal statement
  • Program director’s letter, which must include:
    • All rotations completed pass or fall (evaluations will be required for all failed rotations)
    • Status/standing in the residency training program
    • In-service exam and/or in-training exam scores
    • Most recent family medicine milestones review
    • Completed Verification of Training form (if applicable)
    • ERAS documentation
    • ECFMG certificate (if applicable)

We are happy to offer on-site observation and shadowing opportunities for medical school graduates interested in applying to our Internal Medicine residency program. Approved applicants will rotate predominantly in the hospital with the IM residents/hospitalists and our Program Director in the continuity clinic setting. If you are interested in joining our residency, this will allow for more exposure to our residents, core faculty and program director.

Candidate must meet the following criteria for residency:

  • ACGME Eligible for residency – Internal Medicine ©2023 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). An applicant must meet one of the following qualifications to be eligible for appointment to an ACGME-accredited program: (Core)
    • III.A.1. a) graduation from a medical school in the United States or Canada, accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or graduation from a college of osteopathic medicine in the United States, accredited by the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOACOCA); or, (Core)
    • III.A.1. b) graduation from a medical school outside of the United States or Canada, and meeting one of the following additional qualifications: (Core)
      • III.A.1.b) (1) holding a currently valid certificate from the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) prior to appointment; or,
      • III.A.1.b) (2) holding a full and unrestricted license to practice medicine in the United States licensing jurisdiction in which the ACGME-accredited program is located.
  • Have graduated or will graduate from an ACGME recognized medical school from the above criteria, within the last five (5) years
  • Have a connection to the area
  • Recommended by a Ballad Employed physician
  • Visa applicants will be considered on a case-by-case basis

If you meet the above criteria, please go to the following link for further information on the observation process and to complete an observation application. Please include complete explanations of the criteria information listed above in the “Additional Comments or Information You would like to Share” section of the application.

To apply for this opportunity, please visit Observation and Shadowing at Ballad Health. We offer opportunities throughout the academic year, except for July. We don't schedule site visits or shadowing while we are onboarding new PGY-1 residents. We only do observations for two weeks.

Why Ballad?

Nestled in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains of Southwest Virginia, Big Stone Gap is a small community with four distinct seasons, thriving communities and a great place to work, play and live.

Come get to know us and our story.

Contact information

If you have any questions, please contact the Lonesome Pine Family Medicine Residency Program Office at (276) 679‑7457.

Contact Amanda Hall by email at Amanda.Hall@balladhealth.org or by mail at the following address:

96 15th Street, NW
MAB #1, Suite 106
Norton, VA 24273

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