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1st appeared
31
May 2000
Debas Reports Progress, Focuses on Challenges School of Medicine Dean Haile Debas reflected briefly on the ups and downs of the past year, but nevertheless took pride in myriad accomplishments of faculty and staff in what he characterized as a time of revitalization and renewal. "What a difference a year makes," Debas said at the onset of his annual state of the school address last Thursday. "Our clinical enterprise is on its own again, we have made enormous strides in fundraising for Mission Bay, and real buildings with real space are rising or are planned at most of our major sites. We’ve made big strides academically, both in research and education." Among the highlights:
Debas, who again expressed the agony of closing the inpatient units at Mount Zion, announced initiatives that would help rebuild Mount Zion’s role in medical education and research. "Just as the old hospital played a great role in health care for the 20th century, so the new programs developing there are appropriate for the 21st century," he said. Designated as a National Cancer Institute comprehensive cancer center, UCSF is completing construction of a patient-friendly clinical cancer building to open this fall at Mount Zion. Debas has authorized funds to establish a clinical trials organization to be located at Mount Zion and has appointed Steve Cummings as assistant dean for clinical research. Debas also has approved funds to develop preliminary plans for a clinical research building to be located at Mount Zion to provide needed space for clinical research. "We still have to go through the [environmental impact review] process, but I am optimistic we will get this project done. There is significant interest from community leaders to help with the project funding." Challenges Debas says UCSF still faces several significant challenges – many of them out of University control. At San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center, for example, a financial crisis continues as the city deliberates its spending plan. "We are most concerned about the city budget process at [SFGHMC] and the threats to close 20 med-surg beds and to reduce the UC-County affiliation agreement budget by $2.5 million. Unless this threat is substantially removed, needed services will have to be discontinued. What is worse, we may begin to lose talented and irreplaceable faculty who have made San Francisco General Hospital the best public hospital of its kind." The chronic housing shortage is another major problem, Debas said. "As anyone who lives in the Bay Area knows, the real estate market is completely out of control. The wildly successful high tech and biotech companies, along with all the dot-coms, have put a lot of cash in the marketplace, creating extraordinary housing inflation," he said. The School of Medicine has been hard-pressed to recruit residents, who cite the hot housing market as their major reason for going elsewhere. Debas says he’s also had trouble attracting department chairs and research unit directors because of housing costs. UCSF may "need to approach city government for remedies," he said. "The housing market has made faculty recruitment difficult, but full employment economy and below-market salaries have made recruitment and retention of staff a major priority," Debas said. And while the medical school celebrated its first annual staff appreciation week last month, Debas said, the school must do more. "We must value and acknowledge our employees and do all that we can to assure that the UCSF School of Medicine is the kind of model employer that we all want to work for. Compensation is a serious concern."
Encouraged by Gov. Gray Davis’ proposed budget supplements to hike UC salaries and UCSF’s own efforts to address salary issues, Debas says he’s optimistic. "While it is too early to see tangible results from these initiatives, I am hopeful that in the near future these and other actions will bring about improvements in our salary ranges and, as a result, the School of Medicine’s status as prospective employer will improve." Following his speech, Debas presented the first annual Holly Smith Award to the School of Medicine to Neal Cohen, who has been named vice dean for academic affairs following the retirement of Bill Margaretten on July 1. A 1971 graduate of the UCSF School of Medicine, Cohen is recognized as a faculty leader who serves on a number of important campus, Academic Senate and medical center committees. Cohen served as physician expert in the Medicare audit, helping the campus through countless hours of meetings and reviews of medical records and billing documents, which Debas says "will likely save the University untold dollars in potential federal compliance fees." The annual recognition of faculty honors and awards is available on the medical school’s website. Links: School’s Honors and Awards 2000 Lisa Cisneros, Newsbreak Editor |
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