UA medical school opening draws crowd in downtown Phoenix

UA medical school opening draws crowd in downtown Phoenix

The Business Journal of Phoenix
by Angela Gonzales
The Business Journal

More than 800 people attended an invitation-only event Tuesday at noon to celebrate a joint effort between two rival state universities.

In collaboration with Arizona State University, the University of Arizona College of Medicine is opening its new facility in downtown Phoenix. Governmental dignitaries, including Gov. Janet Napolitano and Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, were on hand for the historic partnership.

Bob Bulla, president of the Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the state universities, said the Phoenix medical school campus is an important step for the state's economy.

"To me, the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Phoenix, in collaboration with Arizona State University, has the potential to be a catalyst for the state's most successful enterprise in years," Bulla said. "That's for two reasons. One, the critical need for physicians and other medical professionals in our state, and two, the impact we can expect on our state from increased medical research and the biosciences."

Pointing to a health care crisis in the next decade caused by work force shortages, Bulla said, "We must do everything possible to change what will be a crisis in health care in the next decade unless we step up our production of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health-related professions. This could be the driver for our economy in decades to come."

Housed in the renovated historic Phoenix Union High School building, built for $150,000 in bond money in 1910, the new medical school will graduate as many as 150 new physicians each year when fully developed. UA's Tucson campus graduates 110 medical students each year.

Judy Bernas, associate vice president of UA, said the school will start with a small class of 24 next year and grow to 150 students.

"When you combine that with the class in Tucson, that's 260 new graduates every year," she said. "That is really is significant."

Another benefit of having a medical school in the Valley is that it helps attract doctors who want to live and work here, she said, adding that Tucson has more doctors per capita than the Phoenix metro area.

"The presence of the medical school makes a huge difference," she said. "It's a key factor in the number of physicians you have per capita."

Doctors want to be near a medical school for its resources and faculty appointments, she said.

"Phoenix is already a great place," Bernas said. "Having a medical school here will be a key factor in getting them to want to live here."

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