Frequently Asked Questions

How many residents are accepted per year and what are you looking for in an applicant?

We accept six residents per year. We look for residents with a solid academic background and a demonstrated commitment to Family Medicine and rural practice. The ability to communicate well and a strong work ethic are also important, as well as a desire to care for the underserved.

Where will I do my rotations and outpatient clinic?

The majority of our hospital rotations take place at MercyOne North Iowa which forms the hub of a system of critical access hospitals and clinics serving northern Iowa and southern Minnesota. 

Outpatient clinics are held at the Family Medicine clinic located on the 3rd floor of the Forest Park Medical Building on MercyOne North Iowa East Campus.

Our office space and academic center opened in 2015 and is attached to the hospital.

What services does MercyOne North Iowa offer?

As the major referral center for North Iowa, MercyOne North Iowa is a secondary level health care provider.  MercyOne North Iowa offers the best of all worlds:  the family atmosphere of a hometown health care center along with the technology, services and resources of a major modern medical center. 

Services provided include:

How much OB do you do?

We have a busy obstetrics service. Interns are required to do 2 months of OB. In your second year you will have a third month of OB as well as 2 months of night float on OB/Peds.

Our night float system allows our residents to have 2 months of concentrated obstetrics working one-on-one with our OB-Gyn attendings. We also manage our own OB patients from our Family Medicine clinic from the first prenatal visit through delivery to postpartum. You can easily get between 40-60 deliveries and we have had residents with more than 100 deliveries. We are involved at all levels of obstetric care and are first assist on c-sections. Additionally, residents take part in the Advanced life Support for Obstetrics Certification course. There is also the opportunity to do OB electives.