Contacts:  Karoline Lane, Ohio University, 740.707.0902, lanek@ohio.edu

                   Colin Yoder, OhioHealth, 614.565.1619, cyoder@ohiohealth.com

OhioHealth and Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine Enter Formal Agreement to Support New Dublin Campus

New Affiliation Expands Clinical Rotations, Residency and Fellowship Programs at OhioHealth for OU-HCOM students, interns and residents

(Columbus, OH – April 17, 2012) The Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (OU-HCOM) and OhioHealth announce today they have signed a definitive agreement that recognizes OhioHealth as the Preeminent Education Partner for the college’s new central Ohio extension campus in Dublin. The affiliation will be referred to as the “Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, in affiliation with OhioHealth.” 

This newly signed affiliation agreement builds on a long-standing relationship between the two institutions, who have partnered to train generations of physicians during the last 35 years. Leaders of the college and the health system see this formal agreement as a logical next step that supports the strategic mission of both institutions.  This agreement does not affect OU-HCOM’s and OhioHealth’s training relationships with other institutions.

“Together with OhioHealth, we intend to transform the medical school experience to meet the growing, changing health care needs here in central Ohio and throughout the state and help address our shortage in primary care physicians,” said Dr. Jack Brose, executive dean of health affairs at Ohio University and dean of OU-HCOM.

“OhioHealth has had the fortune of developing a long-term relationship with OU-HCOM to train medical students, interns and residents, providing them with the education and experience they need to deliver the highest quality care and services to their patients,” said Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, chief medical officer at OhioHealth. “We see this aspect of our work an essential part of our mission to improve the health of those we serve and are thrilled to partner with OU-HCOM to expand these learning opportunities in our hospitals.”

The formal agreement will:

• Expand clinical rotations for students based in central Ohio and in Athens.
   

• Expand residency and fellowship training opportunities in hospitals throughout the OhioHealth system.
   

• Expand residency and fellowship training opportunities in hospitals throughout the OhioHealth system.
   

• Engage more OhioHealth physicians in a variety of specialties who, as clinical faculty members, will share their knowledge and experiences with students in central Ohio and in Athens.
   

• Encourage discovery through new research programs in primary care and biomedical sciences.
   

• Incentivize more medical students to choose primary care as a specialty and stay in Ohio to practice.

This agreement builds upon one of the major projects identified in the historic $105 million gift from the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations to OU-HCOM in April 2011 – establishing an extension campus in central Ohio where medical students will be trained specifically to address physician shortage issues in communities where specialists in family medicine, general internal medicine and pediatrics are needed.

The first class of 50 medical students at the extension campus is slated to begin in August 2014, assuming approvals by the college’s accreditation agency, the American Osteopathic Association Council on Osteopathic College Accreditation, and the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association.

Under the agreement, OhioHealth will assist with the growth of the college and its class size by providing a substantial number of clinical rotations to support the Columbus-based students. They will also continue to provide rotations for many OU-HCOM students who complete their first two years at the college’s Athens campus.

 “We’ll be working with even more OhioHealth physicians to teach our students,” said Dr. Brose. “This will enhance the quality of the experience in Athens, as well. We may have a specialist giving a lecture in Dublin, for instance, and video broadcast the lecture live to our class in Athens.” The educational program will be based on OU-HCOM’s current curriculum, soon with more OhioHealth physicians who will provide additional clinical teaching expertise and resources.

OhioHealth and the medical school have long been partners in training medical students and residents. Doctors Hospital was one of the original training sites for the college when it opened in 1976. OhioHealth hospitals have since been key training sites for both medical students and residents.

Of the college’s nearly 2,700 graduates, 60 percent have remained in Ohio to practice. Fifty-six percent of the college’s graduates in Ohio practice in the primary care fields of family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics, and of those physicians, 56 percent practice in communities with fewer than 50,000 residents. Ninety-five percent of OU-HCOM graduates practicing primary care in central Ohio completed their residencies in Ohio.

“All this is an effort to have medical students train directly in communities where they can learn how to best make a difference as a physician, treating patients with specific needs in these communities,” said Dr. Brose.

About Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine

OU-HCOM is a national leader in training primary care physicians, which includes family practice, general internal medicine and pediatrics. More than half of OU-HCOM’s practicing graduates serve as primary care physicians, and 60 percent choose to stay in Ohio to practice.

That makes the college number one in Ohio and near the top ten nationally in medical schools that graduate physicians who practice primary care, particularly in under-served rural areas.

The Athens-based medical school reaches statewide through its collaboration with 26 teaching hospitals throughout Ohio. This hospital consortium, called the Centers for Osteopathic Research and Education (CORE), is recognized as one of the largest, most advanced and best-supported osteopathic medical education consortiums in the country. www.oucom.ohio.edu

About OhioHealth

OhioHealth is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit, charitable, healthcare organization serving and supported by the community. Named by Thomson Reuters as one of the 10 best healthcare systems in America three years in a row, OhioHealth has also been recognized by FORTUNE Magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” six years in a row, 2007-2012!

Based in Columbus, Ohio, it is a family of 21,000 associates, physicians and volunteers, 18 hospitals, 23 health and surgery centers, home-health providers, medical equipment and health service suppliers throughout a 40-county area. OhioHealth member hospitals include Riverside Methodist Hospital, Grant Medical Center, Doctors Hospital-Columbus, Grady Memorial Hospital, Dublin Methodist Hospital, Doctors Hospital-Nelsonville, Hardin Memorial Hospital and Marion General Hospital. For more information, please visit our website at www.ohiohealth.com.

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