Category Archives: Medical School

When the mayors of Harlingen and Edinburg received invites to a University of Texas event outlining a blueprint for the Rio Grande Valleys long sought medical school, both mayors had already scheduled a prior engagement on that topic later that same day.

Edinburg Mayor Richard Garcia and Harlingen Mayor Chris Boswell were front and center at the University of Texas-Pan American on Friday when system Chancellor Francisco G. Cigarroa announced a blueprint that will graduate the first class of South Texas medical students by 2018.

Garcia and Boswell left UTs morning announcement to join other Valley mayors in weighing their options for a medical school behind closed doors, a meeting set up days before the hastily-scheduled UT news conference to unveil its own vision for a Valley medical school.

Garcia organized the meeting of mayors to determine common ground issues and affirm a shared commitment to a South Texas medical school that will likely take the combined support of Hidalgo and Cameron counties, he said.

But the meeting also exposed some Valley officials frustration with UTs slow pace to establish a full-fledged medical school here and a willingness to explore whats perceived as genuine interest from the Texas A&M system to establish its own Valley medical school.

Garcia said nothing came out of the mayors meeting attended by city, county and Doctors Hospital at Renaissance and Valley Baptist officials other than a goal to host similar discussions soon.

Theres already been an investment made here (with UT) and we want to move that forward, said Garcia, whose city would retain the medical schools research facilities under UTs proposal. But if something else comes up thats worth talking about, lets talk about it.

PLANTING A FLAG

The fight for a Valley medical school is part of an overall push between the UT and Texas A&M systems to increase their presence in one of the fastest growing regions of the state. Internal conflicts between Hidalgo and Cameron county officials remain about how the school should be funded and where its components would be located.

On Friday, Cigarroa announced a blueprint to graduate the first cohort of Valley medical students in 2018 by relying on medical school infrastructure already in place in the Valley and San Antonio. As UT pursues accreditation and funding for the Valleys medical school, students could enroll in an independent South Texas track, begin classes at UTs Health Science Center in San Antonio and complete their final two years and clerkships in the Valley.

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Valley weighs A&M option on long sought medical school

It's no secret that medical students pay a steep price for four years of education at a U.S. medical school. In fact, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), in 2011, 86 percent of medical school graduates owed a median amount of $162,000 in education debt, which breaks down to monthly payments of $1,500 to $2,100.

However, some people may be surprised to learn that education debt levels among U.S. medical school graduates held fairly steady between 2009 and 2011. Mean education debt amounts for those years were $156,500 in 2009, $157,900 in 2010 and $161,300 in 2011, according to a new analysis of trends in cost and debt at U.S. medical schools that was released by the AAMC in July. Those amounts represent a 1.2 percent, a 1.0 percent and a 2.1 percent increase, respectively, compared with the previous year.

According to the analysis, in July 2006, Stafford loan interest rates for graduate medical education were fixed at 6.8 percent; previously, interest rates were variable and at times fell to less than 3 percent. Thus, the graduating class of 2009 "was the first medical school class to face at least three years of a fixed 6.8 percent interest rate," and that was the same time the growth of debt levels began to slow.

The researchers pointed out that the costs associated with medical school attendance traditionally have been based on tuition and fees for first-year students without taking into account the living expenses those students incurred or the fact that medical students in their final two years of study often spend more on living expenses. Therefore, for the purposes of their research, the authors included four full years of medical school in calculating costs.

Notably, the authors compared costs in private versus public medical schools and noted that in 2009-10, the 75 public medical schools that participated in the study reported a combined $1.25 billion in gifts and endowment funds available to support medical student grants and scholarships; the 51 participating private schools reported double that amount, or $2.5 billion.

The authors concluded that more research is needed to identify additional factors -- aside from cost and interest rates -- that play a role in the medical school debt that students incur.

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U.S. Medical Students' Education Debt Level Holds Steady Three Years Running

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

In collaboration with UC Irvine Extension, the UC Irvine School of Medicine will offer a new fully online, first-year medical school course titled, Introduction to Medical Physiology from September 11, 2012 through March 11, 2013. The course is open to all participants interested in attending medical school, earning transferable UC graduate credits, or those seeking to enhance their resume with medical education experience. This is the first UC Irvine online medical course to be offered to the general public through open enrollment participants do not need to be admitted to UC Irvine to enroll.

Students have the rare opportunity to learn identical material and take the same exams presented to first year medical students at the prestigious UC Irvine School of Medicine, said Dr. Harry Haigler, Ph.D., Associate Dean of Basic Science Medical Education at UC Irvine School of Medicine. Course participants will also receive support and guidance from medical school faculty, compare their performance with other medical school students, and obtain an advantage by experiencing the rigorous medical school curriculum before admittance to medical school. We are very excited to be able to offer this medical training to the general public.

The online Introduction to Medical Physiology course will expose participants to the classical concepts of medical physiology with an emphasis on topics that are fundamental to the practice of clinical medicine. The first half of the course will address hemostasis, blood, neurophysiology and cardiovascular physiology. The second half of the course will address topics including gastrointestinal, renal, respiratory, acid/base, endocrine, exercise, temperature regulation and sexual physiology.

For more information or to register for the course, call 949-824-0697 or visit http://www.extension.uci.edu/premed.

About UC Irvine Extension: University of California, Irvine Extension is the continuing education arm of UC Irvine. Through thousands of courses and programs offered on campus, online and on site, UC Irvine Extension helps adult learners reach their career advancement and personal enrichment goals and is celebrating 50 years of providing universally accessible, university-level learning to local, regional, and global communities. Learn more at extension.uci.edu, or join us on Facebook at facebook.com/uciextension.

About UC Irvine School of Medicine: Ranked as one of the top 50 U.S. medical schools for research by U.S. News & World Report, University of California, Irvine's School of Medicine is dedicated to advancing medical knowledge and clinical practice through scholarly research, physician education and high-quality care. The medical school nurtures the development of medical students, resident physicians and scholars in the clinical and basic sciences and supports the dissemination of research advances for the benefit of society. For more information, visit http://www.som.uci.edu/index.asp.

About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UC Irvine is a top-ranked university dedicated to research, scholarship and community service. Led by Chancellor Michael Drake since 2005, UC Irvine is among the most dynamic campuses in the University of California system, with nearly 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students, 1,100 faculty and 9,000 staff. Orange Countys largest employer, UC Irvine contributes an annual economic impact of $4.2 billion. For more UC Irvine news, visit http://www.today.uci.edu.

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University of California, Irvine Offers Online Medical School Course for Open Enrollment

BROWNSVILLE - Graduation ceremonies are just six years away for the first class of students from the Rio Grande Valley's long-awaited medical school, University of Texas Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa pledged Friday.

"The year 2018 will be a very special year for all of us," Cigarroa said at a news conference at the UT-Pan American in Edinburg, site of the medical research component of what's currently the three-campus Regional Academic Health Center.

As has been the case for hundreds of students since the gala opening of the center in Harlingen in 2002, future doctors will spend their first two academic years at the UT-Health Science Center at San Antonio and third and fourth years completing clinical training in the Valley.

The key difference is that students will, from the outset, have applied to a dedicated South Texas admission track. Hopes are high their diplomas will carry the University of Texas Health Science Center-South Texas name.

Independent school

While key questions remain - such as accreditation and funding for the estimated $40 million to $50 million in annual expenses - Cigarroa said that by then the center will have become a more independent entity.

"We are beginning the transition of the UT Health Science Center-San Antonio Regional Academic Health Center - known as the RAHC - into an independent, free-standing, comprehensive and research-intensive regional medical school, with its own president and structure, for South Texas," he said.

Plans for a full-fledged medical school for the Rio Grande Valley have been in the works since the early 1990s, when state Sen. Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville, began documenting how the Valley's fast-growing and historically underserved region needed to better recruit physicians likely to commit to the area.

In addition to previous infrastructure investments by the Texas Legislature and UT System, the Legislature contributes about $11 million annually to support the RAHC's medical and research divisions. In 2011, UT Regents invested another $30 million for faculty recruitment, a clinical simulation facility, programs in obesity and diabetes and education in the sciences. In May, the regents endorsed new medical schools for Austin and South Texas.

"By committing to graduating students by 2018, UT has given everyone in South Texas reason to celebrate," Lucio said Friday. "I do see a lot of light at the end of the tunnel," he said. "For the first time, I feel confident we can accomplish our goals in the next five years."

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UT chancellor touts progress on Valley medical school

UT medical school

Re: Aug. 11 article "Plan for medical school unfolds."

Let's transform health care delivery by developing a University of Texas medical school and related initiatives sponsored by UT Southwestern Medical School, Central Health, the Seton Family of Healthcare and others. Working together to implement the "10 in 10" plan, we can move into national prominence by improving access to primary care, addressing the growing doctor shortage, propelling biomedical research, providing sorely needed mental health services and creating many new good- paying jobs.

If you have good health insurance, you know how important having a doctor is to good health, holding a job, being productive and leading a meaningful life. What a shame that Medicare beneficiaries have trouble finding a doctor to take care of them!

Let's get our emergency rooms out of the primary care business! Let's develop a sustainable health-care delivery system while creating thousands of new technical and professional jobs.

Charles E. Durant Jr.

Austin

World-class medicine

Re: Aug. 15 editorial, "A nickel for your health care."

I will be delighted to give my nickel to the Central Health Board to help establish a medical school in Austin! I have a brother-in-law who has multiple myeloma, a terrible blood/bone cancer, and he has lived beyond the average life span for people who have this cancer because of the exceptional care and treatment he has received at the University of Arkansas Medical School. World-class physicians move to Little Rock to teach or train at this facility, and people from all over the world spend months in Little Rock to receive mostly outpatient treatment that brings dollars to the city and provides the medical care these folks need.

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UT medical school; Geo Care concerns; World-class medicine

When the mayors of Harlingen and Edinburg received invites to a University of Texas event outlining a blueprint for the Rio Grande Valleys long sought medical school, both mayors had already scheduled a prior engagement on that topic later that same day. Edinburg Mayor Richard Garcia and Harlingen Mayor Chris Boswell were front and center at the University of Texas-Pan American on Friday when system Chancellor Francisco G. Cigarroa announced a blueprint that will graduate the first class of South Texas medical students by 2018. Garcia and Boswell left UTs morning announcement to join other Valley mayors in weighing their options for a medical school behind closed doors, a meeting set up days before the hastily-scheduled UT news conference to unveil its own vision for a Valley medical school. Garcia organized the meeting of mayors to determine common ground issues and affirm a shared commitment to a South Texas medical school that will likely take the combined support of Hidalgo and Cameron counties, he said. But the meeting also exposed some Valley officials frustration with UTs slow pace to establish a full-fledged medical school here and a willingness to explore whats perceived as genuine interest from the Texas A&M system to establish its own Valley medical school. Garcia said nothing came out of the mayors meeting attended by city, county and Doctors Hospital at Renaissance and Valley Baptist officials other than a goal to host similar discussions soon. Theres already been an investment made here (with UT) and we want to move that forward, said Garcia, whose city would retain the medical schools research facilities under UTs proposal. But if something else comes up thats worth talking about, lets talk about it.

PLANTING A FLAG The fight for a Valley medical school is part of an overall push between the UT and Texas A&M systems to increase their presence in one of the fastest growing regions of the state. Internal conflicts between Hidalgo and Cameron county officials remain about how the school should be funded and where its components would be located. On Friday, Cigarroa announced a blueprint to graduate the first cohort of Valley medical students in 2018 by relying on medical school infrastructure already in place in the Valley and San Antonio. As UT pursues accreditation and funding for the Valleys medical school, students could enroll in an independent South Texas track, begin classes at UTs Health Science Center in San Antonio and complete their final two years and clerkships in the Valley. That process is nearly identical to the one that has already sent hundreds of UT Health Science Center medical students to the Valley, but the independent admissions track would eventually turn into a standalone medical school. UT officials said their blueprint is part of the overall vision for a South Texas medical school that fully began in 1997 when the state authorized the Valleys Regional Academic Health Centers, or RAHCs. Since then, UT has spent $79 million building the RAHCs in Harlingen and Edinburg that focus on medical education and clinical research, respectively. UT regents have also put $30 million toward residency programs and biomedical research in the Valley, and theyve funded about $11 million annually to support the medical and research divisions at the RAHC. Boswell said UTs blueprint highlighted the huge investments its made so far and a pledge to go even further. UT has made a commitment to graduate that first class and make it a full, freestanding medical school, said Boswell, praising UTs track record of building some of the nations best medical schools. I appreciate everybody wanting to make things happen quickly, but we also want to make sure we do it right. We dont want a second-rate medical school. But some Hidalgo County officials have expressed frustration with UTs slow pace and reluctance to spend big here. UT regents authorized $30 million in annual funding for Austins medical school from Permanent University Funds in May, but they dedicated no funds for the Valleys school at the same meeting. While there is no proposal on paper from A&M yet, there is interest in seeing if they can make a better offer, said state Sen. Juan Chuy Hinojosa, D-McAllen. Hinojosa, Hidalgo County Judge Ramon Garcia, McAllen businessman Alonzo Cantu, who also founded Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, and some local doctors flew to College Station this week to meet with A&M Chancellor John Sharp to discuss his systems vision for the Valley. Although largely administrative in nature, A&M took steps this month to place its health science center under its flagship university in College Station. The move would allow its regents to expend Permanent University Funds an endowment created by mineral revenues on putting a medical school in South Texas. Hinojosa, who skipped UTs Friday announcement to campaign in Nueces County, isnt opposed to a UT medical school but said their regents lack the will or the commitment to make it happen. Weve been in line for 12 years and, all of a sudden, we get pushed back and somebody jumps in front, Hinojosa said Friday. It doesnt sit well with many of us in South Texas. We need to go where we are wanted.

INTERNAL DIVISIONS Valley officials next step may be ensuring theyre all on the same page because either medical school route would require developing a funding stream. Since laying the foundation for a medical school with the RAHCs, Cameron County officials have cultivated strong ties with UT system leaders. UT placed its School of Public Health in Brownsville and put the RAHCs medical education component in Harlingen, a centralized location that now also houses the structure for a veterans hospital. But McAllen business leaders, reflecting prior issues with regional taxing districts in the Valley, have expressed a desire for Hidalgo County to get the bulk of the medical schools infrastructure. Since Hidalgo County contains more than $30 billion in taxable property values compared to $16 billion in Cameron County, they want most of its presence in the McAllen metro area. In his speech at UTs announcement on Friday, Brownsville state Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr. tried to assuage those concerns by lauding the medical schools research component that would be located in Edinburg. Although the mayors meeting was scheduled for later at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance, it was also likely no coincidence that UTs announcement was hosted in its future research hub in Edinburg rather than its medical education division in Harlingen. State Rep. Aaron Pea, R-Edinburg, said Valley officials will have to rise to the occasion when determining the structure of the medical school in South Texas, the most populous region of the state without one. We all bemoan the Friday night football mentality, but now were going to have to live up to that, said Pea, an outgoing member of the Valleys delegation. It is as significant a challenge as is the funding of this school.

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Amid UT announcement, Valley weighs A&M med school option