Quinnipiac University plans to open a medical school, citing a national shortage of doctors which could intensify if an overhaul of the nation’s health care system passes.
Quinnipiac President John L. Lahey said Thursday the university would begin the complex process of opening the medical school, enrolling the first class in 2013 or 2014 on its new campus in North Haven. The initial class will have about 50 students and the school will eventually have 500.
Quinnipiac’s Board of Trustees approved the plan, expected to cost $75 million, after a year of internal studies and a six-month study by outside experts who concluded a medical school is compatible with the university’s mission and that the school has the resources.
Quinnipiac officials said they would begin discussions with possible hospital/health system clinical partners and the accrediting body for medical schools. Lahey called those steps “two major challenges.”
There are a dozen applicants for new medical schools filed in the past five years that are in various stages of accreditation, representing the biggest expansion since the 1970s, said Dan Hunt, co-secretary of the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the accrediting body.
The increase stems from a shortage of doctors. Most existing medical schools are also expanding enrollment, but Hunt said the expansions and new schools will not increase the number of doctors unless more residency slots, which graduates attend before getting their medical licenses, are created.
With the possibility of health care reform extending insurance coverage to another 30 million Americans, the country will require many more medical professionals trained to deliver primary care, Quinnipiac officials said.
“Quinnipiac will be at the forefront nationally in addressing this critical health care need,” Lahey said.
Quinnipiac, based in Hamden, enrolls 5,700 full-time undergraduate and 2,000 graduate students. (AP)
