Groundbreaking Signals Construction of Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences.

First New Medical School in Pacific Northwest in 60 Years

YAKIMA, Wash. -- The shovels of soil turned today represent a significant advancement toward improving access to health care for the people of the Pacific Northwest.

Groundbreaking ceremonies were held to launch construction of Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences (PNWU), the first medical school in 60 years to be built in the Pacific Northwest. The school and campus are located in the Terrace Heights area of Yakima in central Washington state.

The 48,000-square-foot, two-story facility housing PNWU's first school, the College of Osteopathic Medicine, is scheduled for completion in July 2008, with the first class of medical students expected to begin studies in September 2008. The college will offer a rigorous, four-year medical degree program to train primary care physicians.

"This ceremony inaugurates more than a building," said Dr. Lloyd Butler, DO, chairman of the board of trustees. "Today, we begin building a new university, one dedicated to health, healing and scientific medical care."

The university's top priority is to prepare new doctors for the medically underserved five states of the Pacific Northwest: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska, according to Fred Tinning, PhD, president of the university.

He points to statistics that dramatically illustrate the need for more physicians, particularly in rural areas of the Northwest.

"In the state of Washington, 38 of 39 counties are classified as medically underserved. In Oregon, 97 percent of counties are designated as health professional shortage areas. The federal government has determined Idaho, Montana and Alaska are also medically underserved. In Alaska, fully 50 percent of current physicians are over 55 and like many rural physicians, approaching retirement, which will fuel the access problem further," said Dr. Tinning.

"Osteopathic physicians provide family-oriented primary care, with approximately 65 percent specializing in areas such as pediatrics, family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology," Dr. Tinning said. "Such physicians have a vital role in the rural health care system." Doctors of Osteopathy (DO), along with MDs, attend four-year medical schools and are licensed to prescribe medication and perform surgery in all 50 states. University officials feel it is critical to train students where the greatest need exists. Until now, the Pacific Northwest has been the only location in the country without a college of osteopathic medicine.

"The American Osteopathic Association is pleased to welcome Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences as one of our newest colleges of osteopathic medicine," said John Crosby, executive director of the American Osteopathic Association. "PNWU graduates will soon be bringing to the Yakima community and the U.S. Northwest the highest-quality health care using the unique and distinctive methods that osteopathic physicians can provide."

"If we take students from the Pacific Northwest, train them in the Pacific Northwest, they will be more likely to stay in the Pacific Northwest and take care of the people in the Pacific Northwest," explained Dr. Butler.

A desire to practice in rural communities, particularly in the Northwest, will be part of the selection process used by PNWU in evaluating students. "We will have a preferential admission policy with first choice given to the highly qualified students from our five-state region," said Dr. William Betz, DO, vice president/chief academic officer and dean.

The school is dedicated to offering affordable tuition rates and developing community-based scholarship programs for students. As part of the four-year program, students must complete both classroom instruction and clinical training programs. PNWU will work with rural and small community hospitals, training students in the environment in which they will ultimately practice, Dr. Betz said. More than 150 rural physicians already have expressed interest in hosting students for clinical rotation and 17 health care facilities have signed on as clinical training sites.

"We are devoted to training new generations of doctors who will serve the needs of the medically underserved," said Tim Morris, vice president and chief operating officer for PNWU. The officers of the university completed an initial feasibility study in 2006, according to Morris. PNWU has been granted authority from the Higher Education Coordinating Board of Washington State to confer the medical degree Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO). The university has also received pre-accreditation from the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOA COCA). Until granted appropriate status by AOA COCA, PNWU cannot actively recruit students or provide counsel regarding admissions.

The building inaugurated today is a $16 million state-of-the-art facility offering classroom space, a library, a simulated patient training laboratory, an interactive video teaching lab, basic science anatomy lab, physical diagnosis teaching performance labs, and faculty offices as well as computer and study space. PNWU plans to work cooperatively with other local training institutions, encouraging nursing and other allied health programs to use the simulation and anatomy labs when not occupied for physician training. Dr. Tinning and university leaders have been meeting with other Northwest universities and community colleges to determine the best ways to collaborate. PNWU has already received nearly 300 letters of support from regional leaders and physicians.

The university is being developed on a 42.5 acre parcel of land. The Temple family donated $7.2 million worth of land, representing over half of the total university site complex. The Temples are one of the major founding benefactors of the university and are owners of the Columbia Basin Railroad Company. PNWU has been founded as a 501c3 not-for-profit private university and will continue to seek contributions and financial support from a wide spectrum of stakeholders in the health care system.

Why Yakima?

"The leadership, vision and commitment of founding physicians, health care professionals and community leaders have made this university possible," Dr. Butler said. "PNWU works very well here because Yakima is centrally located in the region and is familiar with the health care access challenges rural communities face."

Dr. Butler continued, "It's an incredible testament to the Yakima community -- to catch the vision and support this institution without waiting for the state or federal government to do it for them. This is happening only as a result of significant local and regional community efforts."

Adds David McFadden, president of New Vision, the Yakima County Development Association, "This project offers exceptional benefits for the entire region. Undoubtedly this university will present tremendous economic impact in Yakima, but more significantly, communities and people throughout the five-state region will benefit with improved access to medical care by having more physicians in historically underserved areas."