HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Meritus Health is community-obsessed.

That commitment is evident in the health system’s decision to hire at least four recent graduates from the physician assistant (PA) program, joining several students from the program already at Meritus.

Frostburg State University has offered Master of Medical Science in Physician Assistant Studies through the University System of Maryland – Hagerstown (USMH) since 2019. The two-year program has 25 graduates each year.

Jacob Ashby, Ed.D., the executive director of USMH, said the program was created with Meritus in mind. He said the school collaborated with the health system to make sure physician assistants were trained to meet the region’s growing need for healthcare access. It recently created a track just for students who intend to work at Meritus after graduation.

As part of the partnership, Meritus provides both a medical director and the real-world clinical training for selected students. Aaron George, M.D., is currently the medical director and Bernardo Diaz Jr., M.D., was recently recognized as the preceptor of the year for his skill as a mentor and educator for the students.

“There is a need for physicians and physician assistants in our region,” Ashby said. “We’re helping to serve that need. USMH and Meritus work really well together.”

Kerry Birney, MSHS, PA-C, interim department chair and program director of the Department of Physician Assistant Medicine, said the program has admission preferences for students who come from Washington County and the other four counties that make up Western Maryland, as well as adjacent counties in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

“The mission of the program is to ensure we have good access to healthcare in the Western Maryland region,” she said. “People from the area are more likely to stay in the area.”

The training also has a focus on serving rural and underserved populations, she said.

Students in the program complete clinical rotations — hands-on training experiences — at Meritus and receive support for job placement with the health system after graduation.

“It is important to our community that we have healthcare providers who know and understand our region,” said Maulik Joshi, Dr.P.H. “That’s why our partnerships with Frostburg State University and USMH is a win-win. We know we are getting people who not only are experts in their field of medicine, but they also choose to live and work here.”

The four new physician assistants joining Meritus are:

• Kelly Combs
• Gabriela Scott
• Poojah Shah
• Jessica Shank

They are due to start with the health system in the fall.

To learn more about the Master of Medical Science in Physician Assistant Studies program at Frostburg State through USMH, visit www.frostburg.edu/programs/graduate-physician-assistant/welcome.php. To learn about job openings at Meritus Health, visit www.meritushealth.com/careers.

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Meritus Health, Western Maryland’s largest health care provider, is located at the crossroads of Western Maryland, Southern Pennsylvania and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The mission of Meritus Health is to improve the health of the region by providing the best healthcare, health services and medical education. As an anchor organization for the community, Meritus has 4,000 employees and serves more than 200,000 residents of the tristate region through Meritus Medical Center, Brook Lane Health Services, Meritus Medical Group, Meritus Home Health, Meritus Equipped for Life, and the Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine. More information can be found at www.MeritusHealth.com or visit our Facebook page or LinkedIn page.