BOCA RATON – Florida Atlantic University has cleared its final hurdle in its effort to offer an independent medical education program on its Boca Raton campus.
The Florida Atlantic University medical education program will be housed in the Charles E. Schmidt Biomedical Building on the Boca Raton campus
The Florida State Legislature approved the program when the Senate passed House Bill 1581, which authorizes creation of a curriculum for medical doctor candidates. The bill now goes to the Gov. Charlie Crist for his signature.
The legislative OK comes after the doctor of medicine program was approved by the Florida Board of Governors in April and received approval by FAU’s Board of Trustees in February.
“What an exciting time for Florida Atlantic University,” said John Pritchett, FAU’s interim president. “We are grateful to the bill’s sponsors, Representative Adam Hasner and Senator Joe Negron, and to all of our supporters who understand that FAU’s medical education program will serve as a leader in medical education, as it combines academic programming with truly groundbreaking research.”
In addition to offering the M.D. degree, FAU proposes to offer a dual M.D./biomedical sciences Ph.D. option in partnership with the Scripps Institute Kellogg School of Science and Technology, which would confer a doctorate degree. FAU estimates that up to one fourth of its M.D. students could take advantage of this option.
FAU’s medical education program will be housed at the Charles E. Schmidt College of Biomedical Science on the Boca Raton campus. Student and residency training will be made available throughout hospitals in Palm Beach and Broward counties.
School officials said the new FAU medical education program will employ a unique continuity medicine curriculum whose characteristics include a smaller, more interactive learning environment; interdisciplinary and community collaboration; patient-centered, self-directed learning; small learning communities; continuity of care, patient safety, and comprehensive, chronic disease management; early introduction of clinical training in multiple community-based hospital and outpatient settings; and a state-of-the-art medical simulation center.
The target date for the inaugural class to begin is fall 2011, with total enrollment of the program reaching 246 students by 2014.
Pritchett said the new program “will be operated without the need for any additional legislative appropriations, using tuition and $12 million in state funding it already receives for its previous partnership with the University of Miami.