My Letter to our Provost Regarding Saving DMC

Date: March 25, 2014 Shelley Berkley CEO and Senior Provost shelley.berkley@tun.touro.edu Dear Ms. Berkley: I am a fourth-year Osteopathic medical student speaking on behalf of a majority of the class of 2014 and in the interest of the future of Touro University California. You may be aware that third and fourth year clinical rotations are critical for completion of the Doctor of Osteopathy. However, you may not be aware how difficult it is to obtain and keep these rotations for Touro students. For example, in 2012 Ross University purchased exclusive rights for their students at Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield Ca, leaving many of our classmates to scramble for a location to do their third-year clinical courses. In addition, more than half of each class has to move away for their third and fourth years, creating a financial and logistical burden for the students, especially those with families. There exists an opportunity for Touro to improve the problems with clinical rotations while simultaneously saving an important part of our local healthcare safety net. I am speaking of Doctors Hospital San Pablo. DMC provides over 70% of the hospital beds in West Contra Costa but gets scant funding from the county and is in danger of closing without additional funds. It is the closest ER for local residents and without it emergencies would have to drive up to an hour in traffic. Touro medical and pharmacy students already perform some of their clinical rotations there so this would also be another loss for the University if they close, or if another institution were to take it over. For more information, please see http://www.savedmc.org/ I believe it would be in the best interest of Touro students for the University to step up and help DMC in the short term but I think the hospital should also figure into long-term planning. It would be an ideal location for an Internal Medicine residency program, with plenty of pathology but it would also serve a community in need, which is in keeping with the mission of the University. Indeed, a fully functional residency program may negate the need for the contracted hospitalists, which may improve the bottom line. Steps like this will help keep us competitive going forward but is also a public relations advantage that will draw attention to Touro. I imagine a Touro University Hospital East Bay and I encourage you to seriously consider this possibility. Sincerely, Kelly Campbell OMS-IV