Another Record Match Day for Family Medicine

Family medicine once again celebrated a record-breaking Match Day on March 15!

The specialty’s programs filled 4,595 positions in the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) Main Residency Match, which is 65 more than the record-breaking class of 2023.

According to results announced on March 15, 2024, family medicine categorical and combined programs offered 5,231 positions, up 124 compared with a year ago. It marked the 15th year in a row that the number of family medicine positions offered in the NRMP Match increased. Nearly 800 family medicine programs offered positions in 2024, with a fill rate of 88%.

“We celebrate and welcome those who matched today,” AAFP Vice President of Medical Education Karen Mitchell, MD, FAAFP, said on Match Day. “Our new family physicians of the future will deliver much-needed health care across the United States, serving in rural and underserved areas in a way that is unique to family medicine.”

Initial results for 2024 showed that the specialty had 636 unfilled positions, up 59 from 2023.

Of the students and graduates who filled family medicine slots in the main Match reported by the NRMP:

• US seniors from allopathic medical schools accounted for 1,535 positions, up from 1,499 in 2023

• Seniors from osteopathic medical schools accounted for 1,493 positions, down from 1,514

• International medical students and graduates (including 749 US citizens) accounted for 1,455 positions, up from 1,355

• Previous graduates of US allopathic schools and osteopathic schools accounted for a total of 112 positions

A more in-depth look at the 2024 numbers is available on the AAFP’s Match analysis webpage at www.aafp.org/students-residents/residency-program-directors/national-resident-matching-program-results.html.

“We need more family doctors,” said Mitchell, who noted the United States is projected to experience a shortage of more than 52,000 primary care physicians by 2025. “Each person matching today moves us one step closer to meeting the primary care workforce needs of our country. Medical students’ experience with and exposure to family medicine greatly influences their decision to choose our specialty. We are grateful to the many preceptors who have touched the lives of our medical students and encourage those who want to contribute to this vital work to contact your local medical school.”

The AAFP launched the Family Medicine Champions program last fall to support those who influence students to choose family medicine, and the Academy has created a partnership to expose students to the specialty as early as high school. The Academy also supports a nationwide network of family medicine interest groups with resources and information.

“The future is bright for family medicine, a specialty that will fill our country’s primary care needs,” Mitchell said. “We know there is more work to be done, especially looking at the systemic issues that challenge primary care. Nevertheless, family medicine educational opportunities in community-based settings will help provide the primary care workforce in the future in the areas that need it most.”

• © 2024 Annals of Family Medicine, Inc.