The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded $750,000 to Queen’s North Hawaii Comunity Hospital to establish a new residency program.

In all, HHS awarded more than $11 million to 15 organizations across the U.S., including Queen’s North, to establish new family medicine residency programs in rural communities.

“This is an important day for the State of Hawaii and The Queen’s Health System,” said Jill Hoggard Green, CEO of The Queen’s Health System, in a news release. “Our Queen’s North Hawaii Community Hospital caregivers are dedicated to demonstrating unwavering perseverance, innovation and aloha. We thank each and every one of them for the outstanding care they provide to our patients on a daily basis. We believe this award will play a significant role in training more doctors and advancing our Mission of providing quality care to the people of North Hawaii for many years going forward.”

The award is given through HHS’s Health Resources and Services Administration.

They are expected to support accreditation costs, curriculum development, faculty recruitment and retention, resident recruitment activities, and consultation services for program development.

“Every American should have access to high-quality health care no matter where they live,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra in the release. “That is why HHS is investing in programs that improve and expand access in geographic areas that have historically been underserved. Training more doctors in our country’s rural areas is a proven strategy to recruit and retain doctors to serve rural communities. By funding new residency programs focused on OB-GYN training, we can help eliminate maternal care deserts, an important step in making pregnancy and childbirth safer.”