MACON – State Representatives Jim Cole (R-Forsyth) and Allen Freeman (R-Macon) announced today that the Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives, Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram), and other legislative leaders will join them for a tour of the Mercer University School of Medicine on Wednesday, May 11. The tour will start at 3 p.m. at the Medical School Auditorium.
“The lack of quality health care in our rural communities has become a crisis,” said Rep. Cole. “Mercer’s School of Medicine was founded to train doctors to serve in Georgia’s rural communities, and they have been doing an outstanding job of producing top-quality physicians and medical personnel. Providing quality health care in rural communities is a complex issue that has no simple answer, but I hope that bringing prominent leaders like Speaker Richardson to middle Georgia will help them better understand our communities’ needs so they can create solutions that work.”
Rep. Freeman agreed that Mercer School of Medicine is an asset to the state. He said, “Mercer’s medical school not only is a valuable resource for middle Georgia, but it also provides a much needed service to rural areas. We are fortunate to have such a great asset.”
Rep. Jim Cole represents House District 125, which covers parts of Monroe, Jones, and Lamar counties and all of Jasper County. Rep. Freeman represents House District 140, which covers parts of Bibb and Jones counties and all of Twiggs and Wilkinson counties.
About Mercer University and the School of Medicine:
Mercer University’s School of Medicine was established in 1982 to educate physicians and health professionals to meet the primary care and health care needs of rural and medically underserved areas of Georgia. Students entering Mercer University School of Medicine will be graduated from a school that utilizes a problem-based medical education program that provides early patient care experiences. Such an academic environment fosters the early development of clinical problem-solving and instills in each student an awareness of the place of the basic medical sciences in medical practice. The medical school has two teaching hospitals: the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon and Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah.
Founded in 1833, Mercer University has campuses in Macon and Atlanta as well as three regional academic centers. With 10 schools and colleges, the University offers programs in liberal arts, business, engineering, education, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, law and theology. For 15 consecutive years, U.S.News & World Report has named Mercer University as one of the leading universities in the South.
