Dr. Laura Barna and her husband Dr. Bill Loughney met at the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine in Scranton.
Both originally from the area, Barna from Mountain Top and Loughney from Taylor, they recently completed their residencies and returned home to start their medical careers.
They're two of more than 1,000 alumni who have graduated from the college since its founding in 2008. Local physicians and community members opened the school, formerly known as the Commonwealth Medical College. They wanted to increase the number of physicians practicing locally.
College leaders say the school is achieving that — and celebrated the 1,000-alumni milestone this week.
Returning home
The medical school romance of Barna and Loughney blossomed into a marriage and fulfilling careers that serve people they grew up around.
“It's nice to come back, to have those opportunities, and just to give back in some small way to the place that kind of made me who I am,” Barna said.
The medical school focuses on enrolling local students and retaining them as doctors once they finish their residencies. The couple exemplifies the cycle Geisinger wants to replicate with students, officials said.
“We definitely prioritize our local students and want them to get connected to the area, learn in community-engaged ways, and stay for the long term,” said Dr. Julie Byerley, president of Geisinger College of Health Sciences and dean of the School of Medicine.
According to the fall 2023 fact sheet, 464 students were enrolled in the medical school. Of those students, 69% were from Pennsylvania, and 46% lived within Geisinger’s region.
The college's first class graduated in 2013. As of last year, 34.5% of alumni are in practice or in training in PA. Of the students who had finished training and were practicing medicine, 42 were either working for Geisinger or working within the health care system's region.
The medical school has built-in programs to ensure the return of its students. The Abigail Geisinger scholarship covers tuition, along with a $2,000 stipend, for up to 45 students each year who pledge to return to work at a Geisinger hospital once they complete residency.
As of last year, 69 out of 961 living alumni worked at Geisinger hospitals as residents, fellows or fully practicing physicians, according to the school.
While Barna and Loughney graduated from medical school before the Abigail Geisinger scholars program launched in 2019, they still felt compelled by their local roots and education to return home.
After an ophthalmology residency at New York Eye and Ear infirmary of Mount Sinai and a yearlong fellowship in glaucoma at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, Barna returned home to practice alongside her father as an ophthalmologist and glaucoma specialist, specializing in low vision and eye surgeries. Loughney works in internal medicine at Community Care.
School leaders say the couple is part of Geisinger’s vision for the future, in which the medical school continues to strengthen the healthcare workforce of the region.
“The dreams of our founders are being fulfilled as we educate doctors for the region,” said Byerley.
Looking ahead
Byerley joined the team in 2019, coming from North Carolina. She was drawn to a medical school hundreds of miles away from home because of its community values.
“We have a real effort at training primary care providers, psychiatrists and other needed disciplines that are focused on serving Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania, and that's pretty special,” she said.
Under her leadership, the medical school celebrated 1,000 alumni. This milestone was recognized at the annual Geisinger Commonwealth Day on Monday, along with other advancements, such as the MyCode project and the strategic five-year plan, Drive to Thrive.
MyCode analyzes consenting patients’ DNA to detect medical conditions and treat patients accordingly. According to Geisinger’s website, Drive to Thrive “intends to leverage our academic work to make the leap from a healthcare model that emphasizes treating illness in clinics to one that helps everyone sustain wellness, everywhere, in every moment.”
“We're trying to improve access to care by bolstering the primary care workforce and thinking about how to accomplish... even better, higher quality, more providers, easier access to care. We're working on that, not only as a clinical challenge, but also as an academic challenge,” Byerley said of the plan.
She is excited to continue welcoming change and growth for the College of Health Sciences. Beyond Drive to Thrive, she has big plans for the future.
“We see a lot of [health] need in the community, and we would like to continue to grow in the workforce that we produce,” Byerley said. “We also would like to leverage our expertise in educating individuals and communities to address the health needs of our community, through teaching of community members, through partnering with community agencies to better prepare them to care for populations and in inspiring the young people of this area to pursue careers in the health profession.”
Local connections
Brendan Colleran, a first year medical student from Clarks Summit, was also drawn to the School of Medicine for its community ties and priority of local doctors.
“I've been a resident of the area since I was born, so it was definitely a big draw, especially because Geisinger's mission is grounded with providing care to the local community and preparing physicians to work with the surrounding community,” Colleran said.
It was his first Geisinger Commonwealth Day celebration, and it made him appreciative of the institution.
“It was pretty impressive to see the full picture, looking back and reflecting on how far Geisinger has come within our community, seeing the anecdotes from patients, from alumni and from current students, but also looking forward to what Geisinger has planned in the next few years through the Drive to Thrive program,” he said.
Byerley emphasized the importance of having students like Colleran enrolled in the medical school.
“The founding story of the medical school is that people in the community wanted to do something to bolster the physician workforce of the community,” Byerley said. “So I feel like students like Brendan are making the dreams of our founders come true. And I find that inspirational.”
As an alumna, Barna feels that the area provides a unique setting for her to fulfill personal goals and encourages current students to follow in her footsteps.
“I knew that I wanted to practice in an underserved area, and there's really no ophthalmologists or specialty care in the area,” Barna said. “I know it doesn't seem like a rural area, [but] it's super rural. We're at a huge shortage of every kind of physician.”
