Strategic Plan 2019–2024
The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix inspires and trains exemplary physicians, scientists and leaders to optimize health and health care in Arizona and beyond. We are uniquely positioned to accelerate the biomedical and economic engines in Phoenix and the State by leveraging our vital relationships with key clinical and community partners.
Our strategic plan aims to improve the health of communities through distinction in personalized medical education, translational research and patient care within a culture of inclusive excellence.
Executive Summary
As we complete our first decade, we are proud of this dynamic, new College. Through collaboration, we have built a distinctive, innovative, student-focused education that is extremely valued by diverse students with high academic achievement. We begin our second decade committed to further elevating the value and distinction of our medical education; to enhancing the translation of research and discovery into tangible patient benefit; to building outstanding clinical programs that advance patient care; and to working collaboratively to advance the health and well-being of our communities.
Leading in Innovation and Personalized Medical Education
Mindful of the requirements and standards of our profession, we will further personalize medical education programs to achieve each student’s full potential and maximize their contributions to our communities. To promote academic and research achievement, we will invest in medical student, graduate student, resident, fellow and faculty development and research training, with the goal of achieving national distinction. We will leverage this distinction to attract and recruit diverse students of the highest caliber to serve our communities.
Growing Medical Education to Address the Physician Shortage
To better address the scarcity of physicians in Arizona, the college will seek public and private support to enlarge its current medical student class size from 80 to 120 students per year. We will build on the college’s successes in attracting large numbers of outstanding applicants and graduating exceptional young physicians. To further secure the best trained physicians for our state, we will work through our graduate medical education partnerships with Banner Health and others to expand the size, breadth and excellence of residency and fellowship training.
Achieving Distinction in Research that Improves Health
We will align our research focus with our clinical programs, as well as our regional and state needs to drive scientific discovery and foster the development of scientific insights into tangible products (drugs, devices, algorithms, protocols) to improve health. This will require thoughtful investment in research infrastructure, expansion of research faculty, support of entrepreneurship and strategies to ensure research sustainability and success.
Improving the Health of Communities by Inclusive Excellence, Engagement and Advocacy
As Arizona and the United States enter a time of enormous demographic change, we will implement a strategy of inclusive excellence to enhance the diversity of physicians and institutions, in order to be more effective in serving our changing communities. By engaging and partnering with other institutions and groups we will enhance the impact of the service to our community.
Elevating Clinical Care and Education through Collaboration
To provide outstanding care for Arizonans and to elevate clinical education, we will collaborate to recruit, support and develop outstanding, diverse physicians that are committed to leading-edge patient care. We will better integrate our research strengths to build shared programs of national distinction. We will broaden interprofessional and clinical training sites with the goal of aligning care delivery, community outreach and workforce priorities.
Operational Effectiveness and Collaboration to Achieve Our Goals
We will collaborate with both internal and external partners to drive these strategic initiatives by enhancing educational access, data and technology infrastructure, communication, organizational decision-making and execution.