New ASU-Mayo Clinic initiative helps redefine field of medical education

Mayo Clinic announced the expansion of Mayo Medical School in Rochester, Minn., to Arizona, creating a branch to be called Mayo Medical School – Arizona Campus.

The expansion signals Mayo’s continued commitment to enhancing its national and international leadership in patient-centered academic excellence. It will provide Mayo with a platform to continue to redefine the field of medical education, training the medical professional work force of tomorrow in team-based, high-quality and affordable care for patients across a broad demographic.

The Mayo Medical School – Arizona Campus will include a key collaboration with Arizona State University. A major differentiating feature at this new branch of Mayo Medical School is that all students will complete a specialized master’s degree in the Science of Health Care Delivery granted by ASU, concurrently with their medical degree from Mayo Medical School, believed to be the first medical school to offer such a program.

“This is one of the most important and exciting initiatives we can undertake,” said John Noseworthy, Mayo Clinic president and CEO. “For Mayo Clinic, this new branch of Mayo Medical School is firmly aligned with Mayo’s commitment to patient-centered academic excellence and redefining the field of medical education. Together with ASU, we will create the health care work force of the future.”

Since 2003, Mayo and ASU have worked together on a variety of successful efforts, including a joint nursing education program, collaborative research projects, joint faculty appointments and dual degree programs.

“Mayo Medical School is believed to be the first medical school in the U.S. to offer an embedded master’s degree in the science of health care delivery,” said ASU President Michael M. Crow. “ASU is proud to partner with Mayo in this innovative approach to providing future physicians with the complementary competencies needed to deliver high-value care.”

“This is very good news for all of Arizona,” said Gov. Jan Brewer. “It’s a great example of how Mayo Clinic and ASU are working together to continue to raise Arizona’s profile as a national and international hub for innovation in medical education and health care delivery.”

The branch of Mayo Medical School will be based on Mayo’s Scottsdale campus in buildings to be remodeled and retrofitted expressly for this purpose. A projected enrollment of 48 students per class will allow the individual attention that has become a hallmark of Mayo’s tradition of academic excellence. Faculty will be drawn from Mayo’s deep roster of instructional resources and augmented by experts from ASU, providing a broad array of educational experiences. The curriculum will build on the recognized strengths of Mayo Medical School, including a world-class faculty, a state-of-the-art curriculum and small class sizes.

“The continuing success of our partnership with ASU allows us the collective ability to redesign medical education in ways that align with the future of health care delivery,” said Wyatt Decker, vice president, Mayo Clinic and CEO for Mayo Clinic in Arizona. “We are very excited that the expansion of Mayo Medical School to Arizona will further enhance our leadership role in training the next generation of physicians.”

The specialized Science of Health Care Delivery master's degree will address the changing needs of 21st century health care delivery through curriculum developed collaboratively by Mayo Clinic and ASU faculty and delivered within the conventional four-year medical school schedule. Curricular components will include social and behavioral determinants of health, health care policy, health economics, management science, biomedical informatics, systems engineering and value principles of health care.