11/21/2025
Dr. Pamela Ralls was awarded the Community Preceptor Award from University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) School of Medicine for her outstanding community-based patient care while teaching UMKC medical students, graduate program students, and/or graduate medical education residents/fellows.
“UMKC uses 11 clinical sites,” said Scott Thoreson, CCMH Chief Executive Officer. “To me, having Dr. Ralls named as Preceptor of the Year is a tremendous honor and accomplishment. She organizes the schedules of the medical students in their various CCMH rotations, and she and the other providers here do a great job of teaching and providing ‘pointers’ based on their respective years of practice. I believe that our providers also do a nice job of showcasing how a rural practice is different than one in a metro or urban area.”
Dr. Ralls is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Community and Family Medicine. She is a graduate of the UMKC School of Medicine and following her residency, she first practiced in Trenton, Mo. Since 2017, has been with the Jefferson Medical Group at Carroll County Memorial Hospital. Dr. Ralls oversees the Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship and teaches rural family medicine to medical students.
“I am passionate about Family Medicine and providing patient care that addresses all of the patient’s health,” Dr. Ralls said. “I have stressed with students the importance of gaining the patient’s trust and part of that is developing a relationship with the patient. Each patient encounter can look different, and the relationship with that patient dictates that visit. I love that I get the opportunity to get to know my patients and to be a part of their life. Knowing about them outside of their medical care, can help me better take care of them. Helping students see that every patient is unique, and their care is tailored to them. Patient care is more than textbooks.”
Dr. Michael Wacker, professor and senior associate dean of Rural and Medical Pathway Programs at UMKC (or Department of Medical Sciences Senior Associate Dean and Professor at UMKC School of Medicine), nominated Dr. Ralls for this award.
“Dr. Ralls has been a true advocate for our UMKC Rural Campus program,” Dr. Wacker said. “We have greatly appreciated her leadership, support, teaching ability, and mentorship which has led to an outstanding educational experience and rotation for the medical students. We were looking for rural primary care rotation sites where students could have a longitudinal primary care clinical experience. Because of our proximity, Carrollton was a natural choice. As soon as we met with Dr. Ralls, Scott Thoreson, and the rest of the physician team at Carrollton, we knew students would have a great rotation. Everyone has been incredibly supportive of training our students.”
As the School of Medicine is expanding clinical experiences to students at the regional campus in St. Joseph, Mo. Dr. Ralls has been instrumental in creating quality experiences for students. Many students have had the opportunity to work with Dr. Ralls over three months, and it has significantly impacted their education.
“I am beyond humbled to receive an award that stems from student nominations,” Dr. Ralls said. “I value the time I spend with students to help them learn. I don't do teaching for awards as the most important part of teaching is having a student finish the rotation with more knowledge and skills than when they started.”
Dr. Ralls started hosting UMKC students in Jefferson Medical Group 18 months ago.
“Dr. Ralls possesses an impressive fund of medical knowledge, and her teaching abilities are unmatched,” said Devin Davies, UMKC student. “Dr. Ralls patiently listened to me present the patient. She then guided me into formulating my own differential diagnosis without telling me what should be included. This technique undoubtedly helped me grow as a student.”
Dr. Ralls does more than just teach a curriculum. “What truly set Dr. Ralls apart was that she took time to tailor my rotation schedule based on my specific career interests,” said Deep Bhandal, UMKC student. “She arranged unique experiences that extended beyond the usual student schedule.”
Dr. Ralls also teaches that being a physician is more than just diagnosis and treatment. “I learned so much from Dr. Ralls, beyond just medicine,” said Avery Foster, UMKC student. “She approaches all of her patients with compassion and patience, and it was clear that her patients truly trust and respect her. This is a very admirable trait that I hope to embody in the future.”
“Dr. Ralls is an advocate for utilizing the latest technology and CCMH has benefitted from UMKC grant money to obtain equipment that helps the medical students learn how to perform certain procedures,” Thoreson said. “Dr. Ralls is focused on quality and this flows from her role on the Credentialing Committee and the Quality Committee - this becomes an extension of her teachings. Dr. Ralls is very approachable, and this is a wonderful attribute as the medical students have questions. Overall, I think our teaching role (even though we are technically not a teaching hospital) is an integral part of how we got to be a Top 20 Critical Access Hospital. We are hopeful that at some point in the future, we may hire a medical student that at some point in their past spent time with us and now as a family practice physician wants to join us in our mission of caring for area residents.”
