 |
 |
Send to a Friend |
|
|
Receive Allina Hospitals & Clinics news via RSS feed.
|
For Immediate Release | For more information, contact: |
St. Thomas, Allina will not open medical school at this timeMINNEAPOLIS 10/25/2007--The University of St. Thomas and Allina Hospitals & Clinics will not pursue the opportunity to collaborate on the opening of a new medical school at this time, the organizations announced today. While a six-month feasibility study reaffirmed the need to train more primary care physicians in new models of care, Allina and St. Thomas have agreed that each organization has higher priorities at this time and should not use existing resources to open a new medical school. Officials of the two organizations committed to continuing their dialogue and did not rule out future collaboration on a medical school should sufficient resources become available. The St. Thomas Board of Trustees met this morning and approved a resolution not to move forward with further planning of a medical school. The Allina Board of Directors reached a similar conclusion at its meeting on Monday. "Clearly, we need to develop new models of care and create opportunities for more people to enter primary care," said Dick Pettingill, president and chief executive officer of Allina. "However, at this time, Allina can best impact access and the quality of care by advancing our patient-centered model of care. In this way, we believe we can begin to reduce pressure on primary care physicians and dramatically improve health in the communities we serve." The Rev. Dennis Dease, president of St. Thomas, said that as compelling as is the need for more primary care physicians, the university is not in a position to educate them in the near term. "St. Thomas seeks to provide relevant educational programs that meet the real needs of our community," Dease said. "We have become convinced that there is a great need for additional primary care physicians who can help lead in the development of more efficient and more effective models of health care. Although we cannot undertake the development of a medical school at this time, we will continue to look for ways to contribute to solutions." The feasibility study, staffed by Pittsburgh-based Tripp Umbach, a national consulting firm with extensive experience on medical school projects, involved more than 100 people from Allina, St. Thomas and the broader medical community. "This feasibility study was a model of collaborative investigation," Dease said. "I would like to thank the many people at Allina and St. Thomas who contributed their time and their expertise to this study. Although we are not proceeding at this time, we expect to benefit from the insights that were gained." The study included a thorough examination of the need for a new medical school in Minnesota and of the mission of such a school, given the challenges facing health care today. It also focused on the potential structure of the school, including its administration and faculty, student selection and support processes, curriculum, finances and location. Ultimately, St. Thomas and Allina did not feel they could meet the financial challenges involved in creating a new medical school, especially given each organization's commitment to other priorities. St. Thomas and Allina also did not feel it would be prudent to divert funding from existing programs or priorities to underwrite a medical school, Pettingill and Dease said. Both organizations reaffirmed their commitment to seek ways to broaden the accessibility and quality of medical care in Minnesota, and will continue to work together through the National Institute of Health Policy at St. Thomas and other venues to advance thinking in this area. The institute offers a neutral forum for stakeholder collaboration on health care policy issues. New care models that improve community health while lessening the demand on primary care physicians can help alleviate physician shortages by addressing the demand side of the equation. Allina is actively engaged in developing and piloting such models. "Allina and St. Thomas look forward to continuing and expanding the dialogue on these issues and engaging a broad spectrum of community leaders," Pettingill said. About Allina Hospitals & ClinicsAllina Hospitals & Clinics is a not-for-profit system of hospitals, clinics and other health care services, providing care throughout Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Allina owns and operates 11 hospitals, 65 clinics and health care services, including home care, hospice and palliative care, oxygen and medical equipment, pharmacies and emergency medical transportation. More about Allina and the latest health information can be found online at www.allina.com. About the University of St. ThomasSt. Thomas is Minnesota's largest private university, with 10,700 students in baccalaureate, master's, educational specialist and doctoral programs. St. Thomas has a pre-med program on the undergraduate level and three other health care programs in its Opus College of Business – the Health Care MBA; the Center for Health and Medical Affairs, which offers continuing education programs for medical professionals; and the National Institute of Health Policy, which offers a neutral forum for stakeholder collaboration on health care policy issues. For more information, see www.stthomas.edu. # # # Related LinksFeasibility of new medical school for Minnesota to be studied (05/10/2007 news release) |