Nantucket Cottage Hospital and island physician Joel Hass have founded a new clinical education program that aims to expand access, provide educational opportunities, and bolster the recruitment of new clinicians to Nantucket.

The Nantucket Cottage Hospital Advanced Practice Clinician Education Program will partner with the MGH Institute of Health Professions, Department of Physician Assistant Studies, to bring physician assistant students to the island who will work under the supervision of Dr. Hass in his outpatient practice.

“Nantucket Cottage Hospital is committed to expanding access, and one way to do that is through a commitment to education,” Dr. Hass said. “We want to expose future clinicians to Nantucket and give them a sense of what it’s like to practice in a remote island setting.”

The program begins on Nov. 8^th with two MGH physician assistant students, Emily Armstrong and Camille Borland, joining Dr. Hass’ practice at 4 Bartlett Road. It is intended to provide educational opportunities for advanced practice clinicians in training – physician assistants and nurse practitioners – while also enhancing access to care for island patients.

“This is a promising opportunity not only for the participating medical students but also for the island community and the hospital,” said Dr. Margot Hartmann, President & CEO of Nantucket Cottage Hospital. “Our hope is that these students will enjoy and value their time here, complete their training, and eventually decide to return to Nantucket to practice medicine. It could become a valuable recruiting tool for us.”

Dr. Hass has nearly a decade of experience in medical teaching programs, including prior affiliations with Boston College, Simmons College, and Drexel University. When fully implemented, Dr. Hass believes the program could increase his practice’s accessibility by 20 to 30 percent.

“In my experience it really works,” Dr. Hass said. “I personally have recruited my best nurse practitioners through a similar program on the Cape.”