Hahnemann University Hospital's more than 500 physicians-in-training were left scrambling after the Philadelphia-based hospital announced plans to close. Although all of the medical residents faced the stressful process of finding a new placement, the situation was more serious for those who have J-1 cultural exchange visas.
American Academic Heath System announced plans in late June to close Hahnemann University Hospital due to unsustainable financial losses. Hahnemann is the primary teaching hospital for Drexel University's College of Medicine, and news that the hospital will close by Sept. 6 upended the careers of the medical residents training at the hospital.
Medical residents with J-1 cultural exchange visas needed to secure new placements within 30 days of losing their jobs at Hahnemann to stay in the U.S. The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates worked with other organizations to ensure none of the medical residents would be deported, according to KYW Newsradio.
The nonprofit helped the residents with J-1 visas find new residencies and provided financial support to some of them. Roughly a quarter of the physicians-in-training had to move out of state for their new positions, and the funds were used to help cover moving expenses, according to the report.
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