Letter to the editor

Dear Editors, As deans of the College of Nursing, School of Health and Medical Sciences and School of Medicine, we are writing in response to the April 19 editorial “Hasta la vista, Seton Hall School of Medicine.” We do not believe that it accurately represents the University’s plans for the new Interprofessional Health Sciences (IHS) campus and the School of Medicine. While the related news article about these plans correctly reflects the facts, we are concerned that the editorial does not express an understanding of the many benefits that will be derived from the revised plans for the School of Medicine. The restructured agreement between the University and our partner, Hackensack Meridian Health, greatly benefits both of our institutions, as well as our students, faculty and staff. We take seriously our academic and fiduciary responsibilities to the entire University and this move actually strengthens both Seton Hall and our partnership with Hackensack Meridian Health. Together we have created world-class facilities and an integrated learning model for our medical, nursing and health sciences students, who will benefit from our interprofessional education environment. Rather than characterizing this as “forcing” students onto the IHS campus, we are providing our students with an extraordinary opportunity to be part of an innovative team-based approach to medical and health education, reflecting the future model of healthcare delivery. Seton Hall is one of the first universities in the USA to implement this innovative learning model for our students. Advantages also include a guarantee that 25 percent of each incoming class for the medical school is reserved for qualified Seton Hall students, with access to the $100 million scholarship endowment that was recently approved by Hackensack Meridian Health’s Board of Trustees. This agreement also guarantees clinical placements for our medical, nursing and health sciences students at Hackensack Meridian’s 16 hospitals and other healthcare facilities around the state. We are very pleased with the results of the renegotiated agreement between Seton Hall and Hackensack Meridian Health because it confers many benefits to both institutions by keeping the best elements of the partnership in place while eliminating the financial burden for the University. Not only is the negotiated change positive for Seton Hall and for Hackensack Meridian Health, it is also very positive for ALL of our students, faculty, staff and administration — not only those in nursing, the health sciences and medicine. Together, we look forward to a very bright future as we move into our new home! -Marie Foley, Ph.D. Dean The College of Nursing -Brian Schulman, Ph.D. Dean The College of Health and Medical Sciences -Bonita Stanton, Ph.D. Dean The School of Medicine