Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Strategic Plan 2007-2011 Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Medicine was founded in 1970 with a legislative mandate to help meet the health care needs of the people of central and southern Illinois. The School has maintained a firm commitment to that mandate, emphasizing innovative and high-quality medical education, patient care, clinical outreach, and research programs. Building upon its original primary care focus, the School has grown and matured to provide a wide array of primary and multi-specialty educational and patient care programs. In this strategic plan, the SIU School of Medicine outlines its institutional mission and vision, and the organizational principles that guide them. The plan also sets forth the School s priorities and strategies for the future. This strategic plan provides a blueprint for the School s activities for the 2007 through 2011 period. Mission The mission of the SIU School of Medicine is to assist the people of central and southern Illinois in meeting their health care needs through education, patient care, research, and service to the community. Vision SIU School of Medicine will be a preeminent medical school stressing excellence and compassion in its programs. The School s education programs will be among the finest in the world, leading in innovation and scholarship, and excelling in the preparation of physicians and biomedical scientists. The School s clinical programs will bring the highest quality medical care to central and southern Illinois, extending these services through effective community outreach programs. Through the application of cutting-edge methodologies and ideas, the School s research programs will provide new avenues of thought to improve health care and enhance synergy with the School s education and patient care programs. SIU School of Medicine s highest aim is to serve its community through the advancement of knowledge and its application for the common good. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 1 of 8
Organizational Principles Guiding This Plan The following organizational principles guide development and implementation of this strategic plan. These principles are integral to the School s mission and vision, and provide important context for the plan s priorities and strategies. Innovation and Leadership: The School is committed to innovation and leadership in its academic, research and service programs. Individual faculty members acknowledge their roles to become leaders in their fields. Excellence and Continuous Improvement: The School is committed to excellence and continuous improvement in its programs, based upon rigorous assessment of outcomes and performance. The School is a learning organization and favors excellence over growth. Collaboration and Partnership: True to its roots as a public, community-based medical school, the School values collaboration and partnership with community health care providers, other institutions of higher learning, and other organizations who seek to improve health and enhance knowledge. Diversity and Inclusion: The School is committed to cultural and ethnic diversity. Individuals of varying backgrounds and interests will be encouraged to grow alongside one another in a secure, nurturing and professional atmosphere. The medical school will seek, appreciate, and respect individual diversity, and will mirror the community in which it exists. Compassion and Respect: Providing up-to-date care for the sick and injured, promoting wellness, and exploring new avenues to improve medical care in the future are our professional callings. Compassion and respect for the individual will be reflected in and advanced throughout the medical school s programs. Integrity and Accountability: The School expects its faculty, staff, and students to understand, engage in critical dialogue about, and perform to the highest standards of professional and personal integrity. Regional and Community Focus: The School s focus is upon central and southern Illinois a diverse region, featuring rural areas, small towns and cities with the mission of improving health care and advancing medical knowledge within its region and beyond. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 2 of 8
Priorities and Strategies SIU School of Medicine will pursue the following priorities and strategies as a means of realizing its vision and supporting its mission. All priorities and strategies are of equal importance to the medical school, and are listed here without reference to rank order of importance. Education SIU School of Medicine is an internationally recognized innovator in the education of physicians and biomedical scientists. The School embraces this tradition and is committed to being the finest medical education institution in the world. The medical school s heritage of being the best is based upon the development and delivery of a medical curriculum that utilizes new methods, approaches, and models designed to transform the learner into a knowledgeable, skillful, and compassionate practicing physician. The School s educational programs instill in its graduates the ability to accurately evaluate and integrate new knowledge throughout their careers. The School s entire faculty shares a passion and a responsibility for teaching. Priority #1: The School s medical education programs will continue to produce excellent physicians for the region. These programs will recognize and build upon the School s historic excellence in primary care. Strategy #1.1: Establish a simulation center, a multidisciplinary training and research center utilizing patient simulation technologies to model patient care in simulated inpatient and outpatient encounters. Strategy #1.2: In cooperation with the missions of the affiliated hospitals, selectively add and enlarge residency and fellowship programs, guided by regional needs and population-based outcomes. Resident physicians and fellows will be more closely integrated into the School s culture. Strategy #1.3: Refine the admissions process to identify and recruit the best students who are most likely to become excellent physicians and serve in the region. Strategy #1.4: Continue to refine the medical curriculum to keep it current, innovative, and student-centered. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 3 of 8
Strategy #1.5: Recruit faculty who have an interest in and potential to become exceptional educators. Assess teaching demands and increase faculty numbers in the departments to reach critical mass. Strategy #1.6: Expand faculty development efforts including orientation to the School s curriculum and delivery models, formal training in teaching skills and techniques, and mentoring. Strategy #1.7: Maintain a state-of-the-art medical library, addressing resource needs and expanding access to electronic holdings. Priority #2: The School will lead in the development and dissemination of new knowledge and practice in the field of medical education. Strategy #2.1: Increase research and development regarding medical student and resident education, including topics such as performance/ outcome of educational programs, use of electronic health records in medical education, teacher/educator preparation, and the exportability of the School s curriculum. Strategy #2.2: Establish additional collaborative education programs with other colleges and universities, community health organizations, and other entities. Priority #3: The School will enhance and reward the teaching skills of its faculty and other medical educators. Strategy #3.1: Establish a Masters degree program to prepare medical educators for leadership in academic medical centers, medical schools, residency training programs, and fellowships. Strategy #3.2: More fully recognize the value of educational scholarship in the School s promotion and tenure system. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 4 of 8
Patient Care SIU School of Medicine is committed to providing excellent patient care designed to improve health care outcomes in the region. The School s primary and specialty patient care programs offer comprehensive services at the highest standards of care, grounded in basic and clinical research. These patient care programs afford educational and clinical research opportunities for medical students, resident physicians, and fellows. Patient care programs will be kept in balance with the medical school s educational and research missions. Priority #4: The School will provide excellent patient care for the region, serving as a referral center and supporting accessible and comprehensive care. Strategy #4.1: Explore clinical outreach opportunities in the downstate region. Expand and improve the School s clinical referral services. Strategy #4.2: Develop specific, sustainable expansion plans to more fully support clinical service lines. Increase numbers of clinical faculty to reach critical mass in the clinical departments and maintain an appropriate balance of primary, secondary, and tertiary services to optimize interaction among clinical and educational programs. Strategy #4.3: Review and, as necessary, revise methods of recruiting and retaining clinical faculty to stress educational and research responsibilities and qualifications. Strategy #4.4: Expand the staff, facilities, and programmatic infrastructure supporting clinical programs. Priority #5: The School will develop and implement new approaches and models for patient care and safety, based on continuous assessment and improvement of the School s clinical practice, and in response to changes in the region s health care system. Strategy #5.1: Perform a comprehensive assessment of patient service and health systems needs for the region. Assessments will include consideration of population-based health outcomes; desires and demands of patients, communities, and health care institutions; and societal needs. Strategy #5.2: Obtain additional State of Illinois funding to increase the number of undergraduate medical students. Strategy #5.3: Perform outcomes research regarding clinical service programs, including cooperative programs with the affiliated hospitals. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 5 of 8
Strategy #5.4: Implement the School s Electronic Health Records system and explore opportunities outside the basic patient care applications to include enhanced quality of care, patient safety, medical education, and research. Strategy #5.5: Continue to define and develop additional areas of clinical excellence. Strategy #5.6: Develop new and innovative clinical care models. Encourage and fund innovative models in practice redesign and health care delivery. Research SIU School of Medicine s research programs will focus on research that is relevant to the health problems of the people of Illinois and in which the School s basic and clinical scientists may significantly contribute to the development of new knowledge. Biomedical research provides the scientific basis for advances in medical treatments and directly leads to improvements in the effectiveness and quality of patient care. The School s research programs are essential to innovation in medical education and the provision of high-quality medical care at SIU. To expand the impact of research, the medical school will support the research components of its Centers of Excellence and seek opportunities for collaboration with other university faculty, scientists in private research centers, and health professionals in the affiliated hospitals. Priority #6: The School will expand research productivity through increasing numbers of research faculty, enhancing faculty development opportunities and the research infrastructure, and augmenting collaborative research programs. Strategy #6.1: Increase the numbers of faculty performing funded research. Strategy #6.2: Expand development opportunities for faculty, student, resident physician, and fellows associated with research. Strategy #6.3: Develop and implement a plan to enhance support for the research infrastructure, including support for core facilities and acquisition of common use equipment. Increase internal sources of funding for research projects to enhance support for the research infrastructure. Strategy #6.4: Increase collaborative research programs with other health professions schools, affiliated hospitals, private sector entities, and other organizations. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 6 of 8
Strategy #6.5: Build multi-disciplinary research teams. Strategy #6.6: Increase funding for research through growth in grants, contracts, patents, philanthropy, and the development of intellectual property. Priority #7: The School will expand clinical, translational, and population health research. Strategy #7.1: Establish a Clinical Research Center to support clinical research at the medical school. Hire a dedicated director and staff, and reorganize existing clinical research support units into this center. Strategy #7.2: Expand efforts in clinical/translational research, outcomes research, population health research, and Centers of Excellence programs. Strategy #7.3: Develop and implement a plan to provide protected research time for faculty in clinical departments. Strategy #7.4: Foster relationships among basic, clinical, and translational research scientists and programs. Establish research mentorship programs in each clinical department. Service to the Community SIU School of Medicine will serve its community by focusing its resources on regional health needs, enhancing its infrastructure in support of critical programs, and engaging the community as an organization and as individuals concerned with its welfare and advancement. Priority #8: The School will focus on the areas of cancer/oncology, children s health, neuroscience, and medical education as Centers of Excellence. Strategy #8.1: Seek full State of Illinois funding for the SimmonsCooper Cancer Institute at SIU. Strategy #8.2: Develop neuroscience as an area of excellence. Strategy #8.3: In concert with St. John s Hospital, continue development of the St. John s Children s Hospital. Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 7 of 8
Priority #9: The School will encourage community service among its faculty, staff, and students, and seek opportunities for the medical school to participate in community service at the institutional level. Strategy #9.1: Define and identify community service to our region. Strategy #9.2: Support and enhance existing programs of community service such as school health programs and patient education and screening programs at local and county public health departments. Priority #10: The School will develop a consistent, effective image within the community and region, and within the medical and scientific professions. Strategy #10.1: Develop the School s brand and use it to improve marketing, image, and public recognition of the School s programs. Strategy #10.2: Improve the School s physical campuses to present a consistent, unified image for the School. Strategy #10.3: Promote the School s Continuing Medical Education programs and activities as a means of enhancing the medical school s reputation in the region, nation, and world. Strategy #10.4: Improve and expand philanthropy in support of medical school programs. ### Strategic_Plan_V13_030507.doc Page 8 of 8