Background: why the Augusta university/University of Georgia Medical Partnership came to be and its economic impact

The State of Georgia currently ranks 40th in the nation in its ratio of physicians to population, and relative to other states, Georgia has high rates of infant mortality, obesity, and heart disease.  In 2007, in an effort to address these shortcomings, the Georgia General Assembly appropriated funds to expand medical education/medical school capacity.  

 As a result of the Georgia General Assembly funding, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia retained a medical education planning consulting firm, Tripp Umbach, to study and provide a roadmap for expansion of medical education.  The firm presented its report, including findings on the economic impact of Georgia’s physician shortage, in early 2008.  In short, the impact of having too few physicians in the state is a steep economic burden.  The forecasted shortage of 1,500 physicians in underserved areas would cost the State of Georgia $5.4 billion annually in delayed healthcare costs.  For each physician that provides primary care in an underserved area, the state saves $3.6 million annually for care that would have otherwise been provided in an emergency room.  However, the firm estimated that every $1 invested by the State of Georgia in medical education would result in a return of $2.54 of state tax revenue by 2020.  

By early 2009, in light of the Tripp Umbach report, the Board of Regents approved the creation of the Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership in Athens.  The Partnership’s first class of medical school students started in the fall of 2010 with a class of 40.  By 2020, each class will have 60 students. In addition, the Partnership’s three-year internal medicine residency program at St. Mary's Hospital currently has a first-year class of 10 physician-trainees, and will ultimately grow to 30 physician-trainees by July 2017.   

It is predicted that the positive regional economic impact of the Partnership, through medical education, research, and clinical expansion, will be $567 million annually, with 3,000 new jobs and an additional $17 million in local government revenue by 2020.  Tripp Umbach also estimated commercial investment of more than $180 million by 2020 due to medical research expansion.

Dr. Michelle “Shelley” Nuss took the helm as Dean of the Partnership on March 1st.  Dean Nuss joined the Partnership in 2010, as an Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education.  Dean Nuss came to Athens from West Virginia University School of Medicine where she served as the Program Director of the Internal Medicine and Internal Medicine/Psychiatry Residency Programs, and as Vice President of Medical Affairs for West Virginia University hospitals.  We asked Dean Nuss to share what she sees as the role of the Partnership in the Athens community and where she sees it headed in the future.

The Interview

Q.  What attracted you to working at a new medical school venture?

A.   What really attracted me to come to Athens was the opportunity to be part of something really special - a new medical school campus that would afford the opportunity to build new residency programs in partnership with area hospitals. The resources that both Augusta University and the University of Georgia have was also very exciting and attracted me to Athens.  Lastly, the opportunity to design and build residency programs from scratch is such an incredible opportunity not available in most areas around the country.  

Q.  How has your experience working in a new medical school differed from your previous experience working at an established medical school (West Virginia University (WVU))?

A.   WVU is a large academic medical center with nearly 400 residents.  The physicians at WVU have been teaching students and residents for many, many years.  Previously in Athens, medical students and residents had not been educated in area physician offices or at the local hospitals, so we had to recruit many dedicated community practicing physicians to help educate the residents and students.  We are so blessed that we now have a core of dedicated community physicians that are willing to teach the medical students and residents.  

Q.  What Partnership programs are you excited about implementing or hoping to implement over the next 5 years?

A.   With the rapidly changing landscape in the healthcare field, we need to equip our students with the tools and skills necessary to embrace technology and health informatics.  Introducing a curriculum that addresses these important areas will be a priority over the next five years.

Q.  Where would you like to see the partnership in 10 years?  20 years?

A.   I’d like to see the Medical Partnership as a leader in medical education through collaboration with Augusta University, the University of Georgia and our community physicians and partners.  Together, we can improve the health of our community and increase access to care.

Q.  How do you think technology, such as electronic medical records and new devices, has changed medical education?

A.   The healthcare field is changing rapidly, and physicians of today are facing so many challenges, including the effective and efficient use of the electronic medical record.  Technology in medicine is here to stay – wearable, electronic medical devices have become the norm and measure everything from a person’s heart rate, to BP, to blood sugars, and more. Physicians are faced with managing massive amounts of incoming data and learning how to use that data to manage patients’ medical problems. We have to train our students and residents differently than we have done for the past 50 years.

Q.  What types of research is the Partnership engaged in?  

A.   Many of the faculty, both basic science and clinical scientists, are working on research, on topics such as heme synthesis, breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, and innovative methods of teaching including the use of technology in clinical practice. 

Q.  Is the Partnership partnering with researchers from other colleges at UGA, GRU, or the private sector in any of its research endeavors?  

A.   At this time our research projects are primarily focused on the research interests of Augusta University and University of Georgia.  With the hiring Dr. Murrow, the Campus Associate Dean of Research, we hope to expand our research footprint. 

Q.  How do you think the local community will be enhanced as a result of having physician training taking place in Athens?

A.   The local community has been enhanced by our presence in so many ways.  Our medical students work with community partners and non-profit agencies to support health programs and outreach to the community. They work to strengthen health programs already in place and to foster new ones. Our medical students have provided health screenings for the Salvation Army and at the West Broad Street Farmer’s Market for the public. They also host events to teach children and young adults about healthy diets and lifestyles. Our students coordinate benefits, like the annual Wine and Cheese event, to raise money for different non-profit agencies each year.  Through these partnerships, we hope to have a positive impact on the health of our community.  

Beyond the medical students’ involvement with the community, the development of a residency program with St. Mary’s Hospital has improved access to care for many patients that have never had the opportunity to see a physician.  Access to healthcare has been an issue in Athens for years.  With the opening of the Medical Partnership campus and residency programs, we have been able to successfully recruit high quality specialists to the area.  Lastly, we hope many of these new young physicians wish to stay and practice in Georgia and help to avert the growing physician shortage, drawing physicians from inside and outside of Georgia to come to our city and work in the medical field.

The increase in students, residents, and faculty members to the community will enhance the quality of care delivered in Athens and have a strong economic impact on the area.  We are creating more jobs and work within the Athens community, and we are bringing in people from the medical field that will care for the Athens community – literally in the sense of medical needs and figuratively as a home and community that has welcomed them.

Q.  Have there been any challenges in recruiting students, residents, or faculty to a relatively new medical school?

A.   We have been very successful in attracting top medical students to our campus and residency programs. Medical students select the Athens campus once they have been accepted through the MCG admission process in Augusta.  The residency program had 1300 applications in the first year of the program, and in the second year it topped 1800 applications for just 10 Internal Medicine residency positions.    

Being only in its second year, we’re proud to see our residency program solidifying, and we look forward to its continued growth in the upcoming years.

The Medical Partnership has been able to attract Faculty physicians from across the US from some of the top medical schools like Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Baylor, University of Texas Southwestern, Emory and Yale to name a few.

Q.  Is there anything that you think local leaders (non-university leaders) or the local community could do make the Athens area more attractive for recruiting student, resident, and faculty talent to the Partnership?

A.   Athens has a lot to offer our prospective medical students, residents and faculty. As they say in real estate – location, location, location.  Athens hosts a wonderful community interlaced with Southern hospitality, and great college town feel. There is live music almost every night of the year, great locally-owned restaurants, and an array of community events that make it a colorful, lively place to live, learn and work!

The Athens community has been incredibly welcoming to our medical education program; we thank our community physicians and partners – we could not deliver our program without their involvement.  Our promise is to continue to strengthen our relationships with the community and build on the successes we have had to date.