Anne Marie Eschberger, M.D. '10: Alumna and Family Medicine Resident

Growing up in George West, Texas, (population 2,200) the nearest doctor to Anne Marie Eschberger, M.D. ‘10 and her family was about an hour away at a hospital in Corpus Christi.

In George West, going to the hospital was a big deal. It took a half a day and a tank of gas, and then you had to wait for any prescriptions unless you wanted to make the trip all over again. If folks broke a finger or got the flu, it could be days before they went to see a doctor.

“I saw my own neighbors unable to access healthcare,” Eschberger said. “The distance kept many people from getting the right medical attention when they needed it. For many folks in my hometown, if their car broke down, they couldn't go to the doctor.”

So she decided to do something about it. Eschberger enrolled in the Partnership for Primary Care (PPC) program in high school, an innovative program that provides an alternate path to medical school for those who want to practice primary care—the routine, whole-body care of all ages of people with common health problems and chronic illnesses. Academically qualified, dedicated students in the PPC program can enter medical school without taking the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT).

“I learned about the PPC program in high school,” Eschberger said. “I knew I wanted to focus on primary care, so I got my undergraduate degree in psychology from Texas A&M University, went to medical school at the Texas A&M HSC College of Medicine, then stayed in Bryan-College Station as a resident at the College of Medicine’s Family Medicine Residency.”

Eschberger is about to finish her first year of the three-year family medicine residency, and she’s loving every minute.

“The [TAMHSC College of Medicine’s] Family Medicine Residency offers lots of learning opportunities,” she said. “Here we see it all—prenatal care, delivery, surgical procedures, chronic conditions, geriatric care—you name it.”

“What I love most about primary care and family medicine is that I have ‘my’ patients,” she said. “I’ve delivered their babies, and now I’m watching those children grow up. I’m caring for whole families.”

When Eschberger completes her residency in 2013, she’ll return to South Texas with her husband, currently a third-year veterinary student at Texas A&M.

“My husband is from Hallettsville, also a small town, and we’ve always known that we’ll return to a rural area,” she said. “He’ll be the vet, and I’ll be the family doc for people like my neighbors in George West.”

Learn more about the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine's Family Medicine Residency program.