Jay A. Gershen, new president of NEOUCOM: ‘It’s all about building partnerships’

ROOTSTOWN, Ohio — On Wednesday, Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy (NEOUCOM) named longtime University of Colorado Denver executive and professor Jay A. Gershen as its sixth president. Gershen succeeds Dr. Lois Nora, who has been both president and medical dean for seven years, on Jan. 15.

Gershen is vice chancellor of external affairs at the Colorado university, where he has held several executive positions and has been a professor in the UC Denver School of Dental Medicine since 1997. He may be best known at the school as the executive vice chancellor who led the conversion of a former Army garrison to the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.

Today, the health center focuses on patient-centered care, collaborative research and interprofessional training of health care teams — all focuses at NEOUCOM. Gershen also helped set the vision and strategic direction for a $4.3 billion bioscience research park on the UC Denver Anshutz Medical Campus, the nation’s largest medical construction project. When complete, the campus is expected to generate $6 billion a year in economic activity.

Following his appointment ceremony, Dr. Gershen took some time to talk with MedCity News:

Q. Why do you want the job of president of NEOUCOM?

A. I enjoy building things. I enjoy being in institutions and being involved with programs where creative people come together and try to accomplish challenging goals. We did that in Colorado with the conversion of a military base into an academic health center. And I see the same kind of challenge here. It’s a different kind of project. But it’s the same challenge.

It’s all about building partnerships, because academic institutions acting in isolation are less successful than those that reach out to the business community, economic development groups, health care providers and other universities. And those that do that have a better position to leverage the message, the mission and the resources of the institution.

Q. NEOUCOM already is a consortium of four Northeast Ohio universities. Why does it need to broaden its partnerships to other community members?

A. The institution exists as a public trust. It’s a crown jewel of Ohio in terms of what it accomplishes. But we’re very challenged today, economically. We’re all looking at the budget and where the economy’s going to go. The more friends you have who appreciate the value of your institution, the more successful you’re going to be in state appropriations, federal appropriations and fundraising. It’s very hard to do these things in an isolated fashion.

I really believe that it’s federal, it’s state, it’s county, it’s municipal government — everybody has a stake in the success of NEOUCOM. My job as president is to reach out and make sure we can take advantage of that and we find win-win opportunities so that those entities can feel that they’re getting value from that relationship.

Q. You said your No. 1 priority as president is to forge a strategic plan for NEOUCOM. Why does the university need such a plan?

A. It has an excellent strategic plan now. But the environment has changed. We have health care reform, which is taking shape. And we have the economy. These are two  major impacts that need to be factored in to adjust, tweak, redirect the plan to make sure it’s appropriate. The strategic plan is a document that needs to be updated on a regular basis to be useful.

Q. Do you have a sense for how health care reform could affect NEOUCOM?

A. Absolutely. Right now, the Congress and nation are focusing on coverage and how to pay for it. A third of the population has either inadequate or no health insurance. Assuming coverage will be addressed in the next couple of months, I believe the next phase of reform is going to be health care workforce development. With all of those people getting new coverage, there will be concerns about shortages of providers — they’re not in the right places, they’re not in the right mixes, the diversity is not there. So I think this institution is well-positioned to address those issues as health care reform moves to the next phase.  

Q.What about the economy do you need to account for in NEOUCOM’s strategic plan?

A. The economy took a hit. And state budgets, including Ohio’s, have taken a hit. We’re fortunate that state leaders have focused on higher education as a priority, and that they have allowed reasonable funding of higher education institutions. But it’s uncertain where we’re going from here. Will the economy steadily improve, or will there be additional challenges? So when you look at the state budget and the NEOUCOM reliance on that state budget, it’s critical to adjust as necessary to keep the excellence of the programs going.

Q. Will NEOUCOM look for new ways to bring in revenue?

A. Yes. For example, the research enterprise is growing here. I’m very impressed with where it’s heading. And with that comes the ability to generate indirect cost recoveries, administrative costs from the grants, which can be reinvested back into the institution. There’s the opportunity to partner with industry and formulate translational research relationships, and technology transfer and commercialization opportunities so that you begin seeing the ideas generated by the faculty brought into the mainstream of commerce. Royalty revenues is another possibility. Another opportunity is taking advantage of a federal focus on health care workforce funding. Philanthropy is another place where there is enormous potential.

Q. You said your second priority is to find a dean of medicine. How will that go?

A. Yes. My hope is the search would begin as soon as I arrive. We would probably hire a search firm. We want an outstanding candidate that brings excellence to the institution.

Q. What have you observed at NEOUCOM so far?

A. Growth here has been enormous. A lot of credit has to be given to Dr. Nora for her insights, her creativity, her extraordinary skills in expanding this institution. It’s not easy, particularly in times of diminished resources. The thing that really strikes me as the hallmark of the institution is the quality of the interprofessional education here. There is no other place in the country that has team teaching, team learning and simulation experiences to the extent NEOUCOM does. Let’s remember what the goal of those activities is: integrated care for the patient.