The University of Colorado School of Medicine has determined that establishing a branch campus is the most advantageous method for producing more physicians, given the the prospect of health care work force shortages and the call for medical schools across the country to increase enrollment.
A branch campus will be geographically separate from the school's Anschutz Medical Campus but under the central administrative and program governance of the medical school. It will not be a new and separate school.
With the faculty, facility and funding needs that a new campus requires, the school will reach out to constituencies: Physicians and hospital leaders to pave the way for potential clinical sites; community support to show the new campus is wanted and needed; fundraising and legislative efforts to focus on funding issues for startup and operations.
A branch campus will be a clinical site for more advanced medical students, therefore the location will need to be placed where there are enough clinical hosts including hospitals, ambulatory clinics, physician offices, nursing homes, hospices and community clinics.
In 2007, the Colorado Legislature allocated $300,000 to fund a feasibility study of expanding the school to a branch campus on the Western Slope. The study determined that the state could sustain the program for $3 million to $4 million annually. Progress has been stymied by a lack of state funds.
In 2010, a group of Colorado Springs economic development supporters, “Operation 6035”, met with Dean Richard Krugman to initiate the feasibility study of opening a Colorado Springs branch campus.
The goal for a branch campus is to work with medical school partners, community hospitals and physicians, ambulatory clinics and other sites to assure that students are exposed to the best learning environment for the best clinical training.