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Greenberg meets with faculty, unveils 2002 Strategic Plan by Cindy Abole Public Relations The Sept. 12 faculty meeting allowed MUSC President Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D., to recount the year’s milestones and accomplishments and introduce the university’s approach to long-term strategies behind a somber veil of the week’s terrorist activities in New York and Washington D.C. Greenberg and assembled MUSC faculty began the hour-long meeting with bowed heads and a few moments of silence for those affected by the nation’s shared tragedy. Greenberg used this gathering as an opportunity to summarize significant accomplishments for 2001 as previously presented at the Aug. 10 meeting of the Board of Trustees, and discuss short-term goals. He also outlined a campaign for developing the 2002 University Strategic Plan, a five-year plan created to guide the university’s pursuits and purpose in its missions of education, research and patient care. “We've had a remarkable year of accomplishments,” said Greenberg, reviewing numerous achievements of  the plan. The revision and update of the University Strategic Plan will include recommendations from faculty and staff. The process will be co-directed by Tom Higerd, Ph.D., associate provost for Internal Research and Assessment and Gail Stuart, Ph.D., professor, College of Nursing.  The current Strategic Plan, begun for the university in 1996 and adopted in 1997, was created as a five-year plan that officially ends this year.  The new plan should essentially focus on manageable issues that reach across the university's focus on education, research and clinical service, while incorporating certain realities and constraints made by federal, state and private resources. Finally, the plan would provide ample opportunities for faculty and staff to participate through the use of ongoing meetings and Web site communications and other feedback. In revising the 2002 Strategic Plan, Greenberg identified the three “C’s” as culture, communication and commitment within focus areas for opportunities of improvement. He also emphasized a shared focus on strategic plan missions relating to the health status of South Carolina’s children, its senior population and move to eliminate health disparities, plus other topics. “We need to be responsible in believing and subscribing to a set of values in our culture that reflects well with all constituency groups that we work with,” Greenberg said, citing the need to identify groups such as students, alumni, patients and other financial and legislative supporters for MUSC. “People need to take pride in their work and feel valued for the contributions they are making everyday.” Greenberg wants to reinforce communications efforts to deliver the institution’s message across campus to other constituents, both locally and throughout the Palmetto State. Ideally, students and employees should be knowledgeable about ongoing activities, department contributions and other points of emphasis.  Finally, he stressed the importance of commitment across campus, first by revisiting and rededicating the goals of the university's tripartite mission. Greenberg praised the nationally ranked nurse midwifery and occupational therapy programs and believes that same success can extend to other programs.  “It's not just acceptable to be okay,” Greenberg said, emphasizing the need to set new goals and aspirations as an academic health care institution. “There’s no reason why MUSC can't  rise to the next level, or top third nationally, as among the best academic health care centers in the southeast and country. Excellence is a penchant that guides activity, whether its education, research or patient care.”  His sights on research improvements are no different. Greenberg characterizes  MUSC’s researchers to be at the cutting edge of their work, which brings positive exposure on a national and international level. He cited the success of MUSC’s transplant program as being ranked number 17 nationally in volume for solid organ transplants. “There’s no reason why we can’t be ranked that high in all programs,” Greenberg said. “That’s the kind of aspirations that I hope everyone shares about our programs.” Greenberg outlined targets and strategies supporting the plan based on the support of specific, cutting-edge programs that address the health care needs of people in South Carolina. His aim is to identify, support and expand on credible patient care and research programs for cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, hypertension and other disparities within the Palmetto State. In addition, Greenberg values the advantages gained by more active interdisciplinary collaborations between MUSC and sister universities and institutions, plus expanded partnerships with local and regional health care providers across the state. He hopes for an increase in resource development using more creative and innovative methods in identifying new resources such as private philanthropy. MUSC 2000-01 Accomplishments Education Graduated 25,000th student; Received full accreditation for the College of Pharmacy; Received approval for a Ph.D. degree in Nursing; Exceeded standards on performance funding scorecard; Created the Presidential Scholars program; Recruited Dr. Jerry Reves as Dean of the College of Medicine; Relocated Family Medicine residency to a community hospital; With the College of Charleston and The Citadel, established the Lowcountry Graduate Center Research Set a new annual record for research funding of $124 million; Obtained $11 million grant from NIH on prevention and treatment of drug and alcohol abuse; Obtained $10 million grant from Agency for Heathcare Research and Quality on eliminating health disparities; Broke ground for new Children’s Research Institute; Created new Neurosciences Institute; Collaborated with Clemson and USC on an information technology grant; Created new Center for Advanced Imaging Research and appointed Dr. Mark George as the Director; Appointed Dr. Kathy Magruder to head Center for Health Care Research; Appointed Dr. Lotta Granholm-Bentley to head Center for Aging Patient Care Implemented the new Hospital Authority; Children’s Hospital recognized in Top 10 nationally by Child magazine; Rated as one of the top 100 hospitals nationally in care for stroke patients; Recognized as Consumer’s Choice by National Research Corporation survey of the local population; Acquired Charleston Memorial Hospital; Performed first living donor liver transplant in South Carolina; Received the Vanguard Award from the South Carolina Hospital Association for the Healthy South Carolina Initiative; Installed a PET Scanner in conjunction with another local provider; Achieved a positive financial margin in hospital operations; Relocated Magill Laser Center into the community; Established a new Women’s Health Center General University Hired Dr. John Sutusky as VP for Finance and Administration; Finished the fiscal year with a positive margin; Set an annual record of $25 million raised in private support; Hired Tom Anderson as CEO of the Health Science Foundation MUSC 2001-02 Goals Education Recruit a new dean for the College of Nursing; Recruit new chairs for Medicine, Psychiatry, Anesthesiology and Urology; Implement the Presidential Scholars program; Implement Lowcountry Graduate Center with The Citadel and the College of Charleston; Jointly recruit Bioengineering faculty with Clemson University Research Set a new record of $130 million in research funding; Begin construction on Children’s Research Institute; Recruit new Associate Provost for Research; Modernize laboratories for sensory neuroscience research with $1 million NIH award; Implement joint research projects in marine biomedicine and environmental biosciences with federal, state and college partners at the Hollings Marine Laboratory; Increase collaboration with Clemson and USC, particularly in the areas of bionanotechnology, tissue engineering and cardiovascular research Patient Care Maintain a positive financial margin in hospital operations; Complete renovations to emergency room and operating rooms; Achieve substantial progress on renovations for Cardiovascular Institute; Plan for future services to be delivered at Charleston Memorial Hospital; Develop plan for future hospital facilities; Establish a residential wellness/executive health program General University Complete an updated University Strategic Plan; Maintain a positive financial margin in operations; Recruit a Chief Financial Officer; Recruit an Affirmative Action Officer; Recruit a Chief Information Officer; Negotiate a new federal indirect cost recovery agreement; Set a new record of $30 million raised in private support; Break ground on Hollings Cancer Center expansion; Complete study of fund raising and management operations; Complete planning for additional campus parking; Evaluate options for improved access to child care 2002 MUSC Strategic Plan developing The five-year horizon of the 1997 MUSC Strategic Plan is fast approaching.  Recent and anticipated changes within our institution and at academic medical centers nationwide have laid the cornerstone for building a new, updated plan. As charged by President’s Council, this plan should be clearly focused on a manageable number of issues or topics, perhaps as few as three or four.  The plan must integrate our three missions of education, research and clinical care while anticipating realistic levels of financial support from federal, state and private resources. The timeline for completing this plan is ambitious; hopefully, the new plan can be presented to the Board of Trustees in February. Strategic plans of higher education institutions are most successful when they involve dialogue at every level of the organization. It is important that throughout the development of our next plan, an opportunity exists for all members of the MUSC family to participate. One opportunity may be an appointment to one of the broad-based working groups on each of the focus issues. Another opportunity, which is open to every employee, takes advantage of the contemporary, interactive communications medium of this digital age, the university's Web system. The MUSC Home Page <http://www.musc.edu> contains a direct link (red button labeled Strategic Plan)to activities involved with developing the 2002 Strategic Plan. An area on the Strategic Planning Home Page entitled “Current Hot Topic” will provide the reader access to the message board to post a new response to the question, or to respond to an already posted message.  To secure this site to only our employees, you will be required to log in using your MNA (MUSC Network Account) ID and password. If you have forgotten your password, or need to establish an account, a link has been included on the Web Page, which provides the necessary information. The question of the first “Current Hot Topic” is: Which areas should be the focus of the new strategic plan? This site will accept your answers to this specific question through Oct. 12.  The responses will be analyzed, summarized and presented to the Executive Steering Committee chaired by MUSC President Ray Greenberg, M.D., Ph.D.  The Strategic Planning Home Page will remain open until the plan has been fully developed.  It will serve as a means to communicate current group activities, but more importantly, it will serve as a mechanism to obtain your comments to a variety of questions, which will appear throughout this period. 2002 Strategic Plan Timeline Phase 1: Participatory Topic Selection (3 weeks, Sept. 21 to Oct. 12) The Strategic Planning Web page will be open to all MUSC faculty and staff for their direct suggestions of topics to be included in MUSC Strategic Plan 2000. Phase 2: Topics Study and Draft Plans (12 weeks, Oct. 12 to Jan. 4) The Planning Executive Committee will decide on a limited number of final topics for the Strategic Plan based on the input from Phase 1. It will then appoint a Planning Steering Committee which will in turn appoint Topic Work Groups for each topic identified. Together they will study each topic and develop draft strategic plans. An essential part of this study and development will be ongoing dialogue on the Strategic Planning Web page which will be open the full period for all faculty and staff to stay abreast of progress as well as have direct input into the planning through an open chat room format. Phase 3: Finalization of Plans (5 weeks, Jan. 4 to Feb. 9) The draft MUSC Strategic Plan 2002 produced in Phase 2 will be studied, discussed, and finalized by all appropriate levels of the University to include the Planning Steering Committee, Dean’s Council, President’s Council, and University Board of Trustees when it meets on Feb. 9. Implementation of Plan (starting Jan. 4) The university will follow up at all levels with implementation of MUSC Strategic Plan 2002.