Dear Spartans and friends,
Last June, I announced a thorough assessment of Michigan State University’s health sciences strategy. Given today’s complex health care environment and MSU’s unique mix of educational, research and clinical assets, I wanted to ensure time for a thoughtful and deliberate review. To achieve this, I named an interim leadership structure and appointed a Health Sciences Council of deans and other leaders from across the university to conduct the review.
After a diligent seven-month process that included weekly meetings, retreats, a survey and a town hall webinar, the council has delivered its final report to me. The report offers several bold options for MSU’s health sciences strategy, positioning the university as a model for addressing complex health challenges and advancing medical education, research and clinical services as one team.
One Team, One Health
Michigan State is uniquely positioned to lead and shape the future of health sciences through integration and collaboration. Our strengths in human, animal and environmental health will position us at the forefront of the One Health movement, allowing us to better anticipate the next pandemic and tackle emerging infectious diseases. Our expertise in health communications can counteract misinformation with evidence-based messaging and advance virtual health care education using artificial intelligence and machine learning. And by creating forward-thinking medical education and research programs, we have an opportunity to address health care workforce shortages in both Michigan and the nation — and equip the next generation of providers to meet society’s unmet and evolving needs and provide the highest quality care.
Simply put, I see this vision as One Team, One Health.
Among the council’s numerous strategic options for our reimagined health sciences, I’m particularly interested in partnering with our health sciences community to explore the following:
One MSU College of Medicine with two degree pathways: This idea explores uniting the Michigan State colleges of Human Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine under a shared structure while maintaining the identities and strengths of each medical degree. This would allow a unified and collaborative institutional strategy for enhancing interprofessional medical education and research to advance health care. This could create economy of scale and promote operational excellence while leveraging the unique attributes of each college. It would also create one of the nation’s largest combined medical colleges — the only one offering two medical degrees — and, through such scale and synergies, enhance our potential to lead.
Benefits of a combined college could include:
Research: A unified research agenda could grow MSU’s research impact through joint administration, enhanced clinical research infrastructure, increased patient volume and new interdisciplinary opportunities.
Interdisciplinary collaboration: A combined college could create opportunities for integrated curriculum development and collaborative clinical integration and care.
Student experience: A combined college could enhance student experiences through shared student services and clinical training.
College of Health Professions: This idea explores creating a new college encompassing current MSU health and affiliated programs that drive our medical education and research enterprise, where it makes sense, to better harness the power of collaboration and address urgent workforce needs. This could also open opportunities to add programs in high-demand areas such as physical and occupational therapy, health informatics and artificial intelligence in medicine.
Students would be empowered with transformative, interdisciplinary education through pathways exploring diverse and impactful career opportunities, preparing them to excel in our dynamic health care landscape. We would better extend Michigan State’s reach and influence by concentrating resources on high-impact initiatives. And we would strengthen our commitment to improving the health and well-being of the communities we serve, advancing our legacy of engagement, innovation and excellence in health professions education.
MSU Institute for Collaborative Biomedical Research: This idea explores building a critical mass of talented researchers — clinician scientists, applied and basic scientists — to enable high-impact research, attracting funding and increasing our institutional reputation. The next phase of our work will identify the natural areas of research focus that complement the valued partnership between our MSU faculty and our external medical partners. We have an opportunity to create a unique interdisciplinary institute of collaborative biomedical research, bringing multiple campus units together with medical and industry partners.
Unified leadership: The final leadership structure for health sciences is still under consideration and will depend on continued envisioning work for a unified college of medicine and a new college of health professions. Any final structure will emphasize the following two principles: 1) all colleges need to have a relationship with the provost to ensure a unified academic enterprise, and 2) the nature of our health sciences programs and relationships with external health system partners necessitates the president also maintain a close working relationship with internal health sciences leadership.
Integrating our health sciences in these ways promises to strengthen internal and external connections and help us realize our full potential as a leader in One Health. It would unleash synergies enhancing interdisciplinary collaboration and interprofessional education while better positioning Michigan State to address society’s health challenges with innovative, cross-cutting solutions. It would amplify our ability to attract major funding and support groundbreaking research. And it would help us create a single docking point for our partners in research, clinical activities and medical education, better equipping us to train the best health care providers in the nation.
Moving forward together
We are excited about exploring the ideas of one Michigan State College of Medicine, a new College of Health Professions and an Institute for Collaborative Biomedical Research. Before making a final decision, we will engage additional MSU stakeholders both internally and externally, including town halls already being scheduled, to ensure comprehensive consideration of each potential option. I wanted, however, to share the vision for One Team, One Health as promptly as possible and assure everyone in our colleges, clinical and research programs and academic governance that we will provide opportunities for learning and input over the next couple of months. Given the scope of this work, please understand that we might not have immediate and firm answers to every question. In addition to these forms of outreach, you can find more information, follow our progress and provide input on the One Team, One Health webpage.
Additionally, understand that this process was set in motion long before — and is wholly unconnected to — recent federal actions potentially impacting funding and regulation of university activities. That will not deter us from planning for our bright future. With Michigan State’s strengths in both the DO and MD programs, veterinary medicine, nursing, nutrition, public health, mental health and athletic training/sports medicine, among other areas, we are uniquely positioned to take this One Team, One Health vision to fruition. I am excited about this opportunity to build on our legacy as the No. 1 educator of health care providers in Michigan and make Spartans even greater game changers for building healthier communities through our groundbreaking research.
Imagine if Michigan State University further strengthens our position as a national leader in health sciences by forging strategic partnerships that amplify its research, education and clinical missions. Imagine a future where Michigan State University collaborates seamlessly with health care organizations, academic institutions, government agencies and community groups to drive groundbreaking discoveries and improve health outcomes locally, nationally and globally.
As we continue these conversations, I’m encouraged by the enthusiasm with which many health care leaders on and off campus have embraced this vision for rewriting the playbook for interprofessional medical education and reframing the way we train physicians, other health care providers and biomedical researchers for the future.
I want to thank the members of our Health Sciences Council who worked so diligently to bring us to this point, with particular gratitude to co-chairs Joyce deJong, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Jeff MacKeigan, senior advisor in the Office of Research and Innovation, for their dedicated leadership.
Sincerely,
Kevin M. Guskiewicz, Ph.D.
President
Professor, Department of Kinesiology