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ME SEARCH offers year-round clinical for-credit rotations as well as a pre-clinical summer program, Summer SEARCH. SEARCH is an acronym for Student/Resident Experiences And Rotations in Community Health, a program initiated in 1994 and funded through the National Health Service Corps. Thus far, MPCA has placed nearly 600 students in Maine’s CHCs and a variety of other practices through SEARCH.

Summer SEARCH rotations typically take place in one of Maine’s community health centers (About FQHCs) for a period of four to six weeks. Students experience hands-on primary care training in an underserved rural or urban area, with a focus on interdisciplinary health care teams.

For a copy of our Summer SEARCH application, click here.

While most SEARCH sites are Community Health Centers/FQHC’s, we do work with a variety of practices including most of Maine’s residency programs, that share a commitment to teaching and to providing primary care access to families in their communities.

For a brief description of the Summer SEARCH student experience, click here.
To read stories and experiences of student placements in Maine as told by the students themselves, click here and download the latest edition of the Bruit Rurale.

Student Assistance

MPCA provides students with services and resources to simplify the placement process and to ensure students can fully focus on their rotation and life in Maine. Our support for students includes:

• A living expense stipend during the rotation
• Housing
• Invitations (with any registration fees waived) to MPCA events, workshops etc.
• Opportunities for all participants to complete a culturally sensitive patient/community project
• A complimentary membership in the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
• Special travel scholarships for National Health Service Corps Scholars
• Discounted rental car if needed

How to Apply

A completed application, resume and one-page biographical sketch are required, summer students may be required to supply proof of liability coverage. Personal health insurance, and an updated immunization record are required before beginning rotations.

For a copy of our summer SEARCH application, click here.

For more information, about clinical rotations, contact:

James R. Dowling, MS
Workforce Development Manager
Maine Primary Care Association
73 Winthrop Street
Augusta, ME 04330
Tel: 207-621-0677 Ext. 203
Fax: 207-621-0577
E-mail: jrdowling@mepca.org

Greta Doe
Program Coordinator
Maine Primary Care Association
73 Winthrop Street
Augusta, ME 04330
Tel: 207-621-0677 Ext. 201
Fax: 207-621-0577
E-mail: gdoe@mepca.org

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