BREMERTON — After 26 years, the Puget Sound Family Medicine Residency program at Naval Hospital Bremerton is no more.

Combined graduation and decommissioning ceremonies took place July 1 at Naval Hospital Bremerton.

This is the latest Naval Hospital Bremerton program to close; the emergency department transitioned to an urgent care center and the intensive care unit was closed, according to Navy sources. These moves decreased the volume of patients and the complexity of cases that can be treated at Naval Hospital Bremerton.

The closures were based on the findings of a Bureau of Medicine and Surgery hospital study conducted from 2011-13 on nine Navy military treatment facilities in the U.S. The study showed that advances in clinical medicine resulted in predominately outpatient services “with the need to have the correct mix of personnel and services in place for active duty service members, family members and retirees.”

The eight members of the final graduating group:

— Lt. Cmdr. Eamon Keleher, assigned to BHC Kearny Mesa, San Diego, California.

— Lt. Jeremy Kenison, assigned to 3rd Marine Regiment, Kaneohe Bay, Hawai’i.

— Lt. Andrew Peters, assigned to BHC Naval Weapons Station, China Lake, California.

— Lt. Hy Pham, assigned to Fleet Surgical Team 3, San Diego, California.

— Lt. Cmdr. Ray Portier, assigned to 1st Marine Air Wing, Okinawa, Japan.

— Lt. Janelle Riley, assigned to BHC Naval Air Station, Fallon, Nevada.

— Lt. Tim Wilcox, assigned to submarine tender USS Emory S. Land (AS 39), homeported in Guam.

— Lt. Bryan Wooldridge assigned to Naval Hospital Bremerton’s branch health clinic, Bangor.

The master of ceremonies was Capt. Erik Schweitzer, Medical Corps, family physician and residency program director.

As the ceremony drew to a close, Schweitzer switched from master of ceremonies to program head and gave his final orders.

“We have honored this esteemed program’s history and described the contributions and achievements of its members,” Schweitzer said.

“Following Naval tradition, to mark the completion of the organization’s mission, we will now secure the watch for the Puget Sound Family Medicine Residency. Color Guard, stand by to lower the residency flag.”

He then told Capt. David K. Weiss, NHB commanding officer, “The Puget Sound Family Medicine Residency has completed its mission. The watch has been secured.”

“Very well. Lower the flag,” Weiss ordered.

All eyes followed the descending path as Naval Hospital Bremerton’s Color Guard lowered the residency program flag.

And it was done.

While the residency program has closed, training will continue for professionals in several health care professions.

“We have begun training Madigan Army Medical Center’s Family Medicine residents in obstetrics, providing them with a community-based experience that will more closely resemble their future duty stations,” Schweitzer said.

“We continue to train medical students from UW. We have launched as a core site for training Navy family nurse practitioners in the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences’ Doctor of Nursing Practice program, and we’ll have three [family nurse practitioner] students on site through this first year, with planned future expansion.

“[Naval Hospital Bremer-ton] also trains students in programs to become podiatrists, physician assistants, pharmacy doctors, medical students from other schools, medical assistants, and other healthcare professionals.”

The Puget Sound Family Medicine Residency program formally began in 1990 and trained and graduated 133 family practice physicians on its watch.