On the MCG report
To some extent, Rep. Ed Tarver was right. Tripp Umbrach's Report on the Expansion of the Medical College of Georgia doesn't contain anything terribly earth-shattering, but it does feature a few things worth noting.
- One thing that frequently gets glossed over is that is rightly emphasized in the report is the collective leverage that MCG and the University of Georgia would have in securing grants and additional funding. The report estimates an increase in 15 percent, but one would have to think that their is a higher ceiling, particularly in the years following the initial investment.
- I do have some questions regarding where exactly the expansion in Augusta would occur to develop the new dental-medical joint program. All I can think of is some minimal space in an existing building on Reynolds Street near Walton Way, but any significant expansion there would remove parking space. I can't find any indication of where the growth would occur.
- The proposed 'downtown medical opportunity district' for Augusta is an interesting idea, and something obviously promoted to alleviate concerns coming from that community related to potential lost revenue.
- "In fact, Tripp Umbach concludes that due to synergies between MCG and the University of Georgia and available facilities, the cost to educate medical students at the Athens campus will be the lowest in the nation, approximately half the average per student cost for all U.S. medical schools." One would think that this, coupled with the minimal space available in Augusta, makes expansion in Athens-Clarke County the most desirable. The firm projects the operating budget per student at the UGA campus to be $100,000 to $150,000 per student, compared with $240,000 per student at the average medical school.
- One thing that frequently gets glossed over is that is rightly emphasized in the report is the collective leverage that MCG and the University of Georgia would have in securing grants and additional funding. The report estimates an increase in 15 percent, but one would have to think that their is a higher ceiling, particularly in the years following the initial investment.
- I do have some questions regarding where exactly the expansion in Augusta would occur to develop the new dental-medical joint program. All I can think of is some minimal space in an existing building on Reynolds Street near Walton Way, but any significant expansion there would remove parking space. I can't find any indication of where the growth would occur.
- The proposed 'downtown medical opportunity district' for Augusta is an interesting idea, and something obviously promoted to alleviate concerns coming from that community related to potential lost revenue.
- "In fact, Tripp Umbach concludes that due to synergies between MCG and the University of Georgia and available facilities, the cost to educate medical students at the Athens campus will be the lowest in the nation, approximately half the average per student cost for all U.S. medical schools." One would think that this, coupled with the minimal space available in Augusta, makes expansion in Athens-Clarke County the most desirable. The firm projects the operating budget per student at the UGA campus to be $100,000 to $150,000 per student, compared with $240,000 per student at the average medical school.
posted by Jmac at 9:44 PM
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