East Alabama Health’s graduate medical education programs are continuing to grow as 24 new resident physicians are joining the organization this summer. The new residents will begin clinical work and providing patient care on July 1.
“Every resident who trains at East Alabama Health represents an investment in the future of care for our region,” said Laura Grill, president and CEO of East Alabama Health. “These programs help us build a strong pipeline of physicians who understand our patients, our communities and the unique health needs of east Alabama.”
Residency programs provide newly graduated physicians with advanced, hands-on clinical training under the guidance of seasoned practitioners.
East Alabama Health offers residency programs in internal medicine and psychiatry, as well as a new transitional year program—which offers broad clinical training before a resident enters a specialty program.
The new classes of residents consists of 13 internal medicine residents, 6 psychiatry residents and 5 transitional year residents. They will join more than 30 existing residents already training across East Alabama Health’s graduate medical education programs.
“The Auburn-Opelika area has a rich tradition of academic excellence, and East Alabama Health is proud to build on that legacy,” said Sarah Nunnelly, who serves as chief strategy and business development officer and the organization's designated institutional official (DIO), with responsibility over all of graduate medical education.
“We are proud to provide an environment where residents can learn, serve and build meaningful connections with the patients and communities around them.”
Internal Medicine Residency Program
The Internal Medicine Residency Program began in 2021 with the mission of training compassionate and competent physicians and meeting the health care needs of the region.
As part of the teaching program, the residents provide inpatient care at East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC) and outpatient primary care at East Alabama Health Internal Medicine Clinic in Auburn. After completing the three-year program, internal medicine residents sit for board exams and begin their careers or pursue further subspecialty training.
Psychiatry Residency Program
The six new residents make up the second class of East Alabama Health’s Psychiatry Residency Program, which began in 2025.
The mission of the Psychiatry Residency Program is to train and prepare the next generation of psychiatrists to provide high-quality mental health care for patients.
Residents provide both inpatient and outpatient psychiatric care at East Alabama Health including East Alabama Medical Center North, EAMC and East Alabama Psychiatric Services.
Over the course of the program, residents complete rotations for adult inpatient psychiatry, neurology and internal medicine, as well as subspecialty areas such as child and adolescent psychiatry, geriatric psychiatry, and emergency psychiatry.
Transitional Year Residency Program
The Transitional Year Residency Program is the newest graduate medical education opportunity at East Alabama Health. This year’s class makes up the inaugural cohort of residents.
The one-year program provides residents with a broad foundation in clinical medicine before they advance into specialty training.
Transitional year residents rotate through several areas of care, gaining experience in both inpatient and outpatient settings while working alongside East Alabama Health physicians and care teams.
The program is designed to help residents strengthen their clinical skills, expand their medical knowledge and prepare for the next phase of their specialty training.
About East Alabama Health
East Alabama Health encompasses East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, EAMC-Lanier Rural Emergency Hospital in Valley, East Alabama Medical Center North in Opelika, the Spencer Cancer Center in Opelika, the Auburn Medical Pavilion and a host of other key medical clinics and practices that help provide a continuum of care to patients throughout an 11-county area. EAMC is a 316-bed regional referral hospital. EAMC-Lanier Rural Emergency Hospital provides emergency and outpatient services while its campus also features a nursing home and an ambulatory surgery center. East Alabama Health employs about 4,100 people and is the second largest employer in the region, trailing only Auburn University.
