Dunn discusses possibility of a WMU medical school at Faculty Senate meeting

Josh Holderbaum
Western Herald


The progress and hurdles facing a possible Western Michigan University school of medicine was discussed to the faculty senate during their meeting Feb. 5.

President John Dunn, Ph.D., and Jack Luderer, Ph.D., executive director of the Biosciences Research and Commercialization Center, both presented a feasibility study of the school.

Dunn began with a short history of the conceptual school.

“The story of the medical school broke about a year ago,” Dunn said. “The discussion broke before any of us were really ready for it. As it went, Senator Tom George was meeting with a newspaper’s editorial board and said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if WMU had a medical school?’ At that time, we hadn’t even met with a consultant yet.”

Since then, WMU has consulted with DJW Associates about the feasibility of setting up a school.
Information from the American Association of Medical Colleges was also used.

So far, any medical school will be a private one partnered with WMU.

“I don’t mean to frighten anyone by saying ‘private,’ but we aren’t expecting state support or funding from rearranging the existing budget allotments,” Dunn said.

Ideally, the school would also be partnered with Bronson Healthcare Group and Borgess Medical Center.

“Those are great centers,” Dunn said. “I think everyone knows how good they are in some way, since they’ve affected all of us.”

Battle Creek Health Systems is also being considered as a possible partner.
Due to the amount of time needed for med school programs, Kalamazoo doesn’t have any full programs.

“Anyone going to med school goes through two years of pre-clinical sciences and two years of clinical clerkships,” Luderer said. “After they finish med school, they go into a specialty residency for around two to three years, with something such as internal medicine or pediatrics. Then they have the option of going into a sub-specialty fellowship. Cardiologists would be an example of that. So if they go the classic path, they’ll be in school for around 11 to 15 years.”

Pre-clinical and sub-specialty fellowships are the only links in the chain not offered in Kalamazoo.
In addition to WMU, Oakland University and Central Michigan University are also considering medical schools.

To separate itself from other medical schools, the school may offer a locally-controlled four-year program as opposed to two years. An academic research component and integrated residency program may also be used.
Giving the school a stronger academic side would provide a different element many med schools don’t feature.

“We’d like to see students interact with faculty in a different way,” Luderer said. “For example, if you’re a surgeon, you can’t wander around an emergency room practicing Spanish. Most med schools can’t create a Spanish department.”

Four major hurdles for the project still remain: support from local physicians, the ongoing commitment from hospitals, positive engagement of faculty and, most predictably, funding.

“The financial phase is not insignificant,” Dunn said. “We took a look at the Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies, and they receive $8 million from hospitals and $160,000 from Michigan State University annually.”
Despite the hurdles still in the way, Dunn hopes the school becomes a reality.

“Our responsibility is to think not only about the here and now but also about what we’ll leave behind on this community,” Dunn said. “If we can¬–capital I, capital F–it’ll be a great addition to the university.”
For more information on the proposed plan, visit www.kzoomedschoo.org.

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Posted by HeraldAdmin on Feb 9 2009. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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