d e a n ’s
O
m e s s a g e
DEAN
John P. Fogarty, M.D.
ur mission is well-known. We choose the right patient-
EDITOR
Doug Carlson
focused, altruistic students and train them in community
clinical settings as a core element in that mission.
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Ron Hartung
When the College of Medicine was created in 2000, there was
no talk of a faculty practice plan. The faculty would only teach,
not see patients. In the early years, those faculty members who desired to
maintain practices typically saw underserved patients at county health clinics
or similar settings. Those experiences were valuable but usually didn’t feel like true partnerships.
Since 2012, we’ve been reviewing our need for a clinical practice. In 2013, we engaged a national
consultant to look at our options in this community and make the case for developing a local primary-
care clinic, staffed and operated by the College of Medicine. We’ve had multiple meetings with local
community members and stakeholders and are now getting ready to launch this project.
Why now? We want to go beyond just preparing future physicians for their local communities – so
we can help address the many unmet health-care needs in our own community. It’s an opportunity
to teach our students multidisciplinary care in actual clinical settings with other health professionals
WRITERS
Doug Carlson
Ron Hartung
Melissa Powell
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Colin Hackley
Glenn Sanger-Hodgson
Bill Lax/FSU Photo Services
Bruce Palmer/FSU Photo Services
Ray Stanyard
DESIGN
Martin Young
[email protected]
and develop innovative approaches to community health. We want our faculty to stay up-to-date
and help us offset some of their salaries through clinical revenues, much as traditional medical
schools do. We want to let our clinician faculty practice the person-centered, interdisciplinary,
evidence-based care that they teach – and build relationships with our local community and many
other partners in health care across the campus and beyond
We’re developing plans for a primary-care and behavioral-health center on FSU property about
Florida State University College of
three miles from the College of Medicine. It’s in the heart of an underserved neighborhood, near FSU’s Medicine, 1115 West Call Street,
Innovation Park and in close proximity to two public schools that have expressed interest in better access Tallahassee, Florida 32306-4300. Send
to health care. Plans are to start a relatively small practice, FSU PrimaryHealth , with three to six clinicians correspondence to Doug Carlson,
at first. The close integration of behavioral health care with primary care is an essential element of the plan. editor, or email him at doug.carlson@
TM
We’ve worked with community groups to administer a health impact assessment to more than
175 people in the communities immediately surrounding the proposed site and have positive
med.fsu.edu. Letters may be edited
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feedback. We’ve heard consistent comments on the need for a health center in this area from the medical school’s e-newsletter,
school principals, pastors, neighborhood associations and community groups. We’ve also had send an email with “Subscribe” and
multiple meetings and positive feedback from potential partners including the school district, the your full name in the subject line to
health department, Children’s Home Society and others. [email protected]. This publication is
Our plans include a 10,000-square-foot modular building that would serve as our initial center for
three to five years while we pursue future funding for a larger, more permanent structure. That way,
available online by visiting med.fsu.
edu (key link: news).
we could start sooner and work out many of the anticipated challenges of getting this project off TO MAKE A GIFT
the ground. The later, larger structure would let us greatly expand our multidisciplinary services, Jim McNeill, assistant dean for
teaching and research in partnership with multiple colleges across the campus. development, [email protected].
This is an exciting project for us. We hope to make a final call on the center this fall and potentially
start seeing patients early next year. Many thanks to our great team for their patience, deliberate
planning and optimistic outlook as we look forward to this exciting new chapter in our history.
John P. Fogarty, M.D.
FSU MED is published by the
Dean
Florida State University College of Medicine
edu, 850-644-4389.