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KU Medical Center unveils 10-year strategy in 'The Time is Now'

This summer, the KU Medical Center unveiled its 10-year research vision and strategy document to become a world leader in research and education. Titled "The Time is Now," the report was delivered to Kansas City area community leaders. The document outlines the medical center's goals for growth in several established, emerging and core research programs.

The document was developed following the "Time to Get it Right" and "Time to Get Things Done" reports published by the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation's Blue Ribbon Task Force, which urged the medical center to expand its research capacity to further enhance human health and increase the discovery of cures.

"The Time is Now" is meant to articulate how some of the medical center's research initiatives on its Kansas City, Kan. campus -- with many ties to the Lawrence campus and some to the Wichita campus -- will develop and grow over the next 10 years. The details include how many additional faculty and how much additional research space are needed.

The plan calls for:

  • Recruiting 152 senior faculty
  • Recruiting 92 junior faculty
  • Building more than 862,000 square feet of new research space at the KU Medical Center and the Lawrence campus
  • Expanding established research programs, including those for cancer, neuroscience/brain health, maternal/fetal/child health, reproductive sciences/fertility, kidney and liver
  • Developing programs in bioengineering, bone, diabetes, heart, immunology/virology, integrative medicine, obesity, ophthalmology, personalized medicine and public health
  • Expanding the Heartland Institute for Clinical and Translational Research and Drug Discovery programs with partner organizations
  • Sharing resources within the university in bioinformatics, biostatistics, compound synthesis, high throughput screening and mass spectrometry/proteomics
  • An estimated cost of $800 million

A PDF version of "The Time is Now" is available at KU Medical Center.

"Obviously, the document and our research efforts will evolve over time, and we must remain flexible to accommodate the changing needs of the medical center, the region, the state and our patient population," said Barbara Atkinson, executive vice chancellor of the medical center and executive dean of the School of Medicine. "What will remain constant is our pursuit of excellence, our commitment to world-class academic medicine and a desire to always achieve more."

University leaders are committed to identifying the resources necessary to achieve this vision and will work toward implementing the specifics outlined in it. Additional presentations to external audiences across Kansas about "The Time is Now" are taking place this summer and fall.

For more information, contact Atkinson at (913) 588-1440 or Paul Terranova at (913) 588-7068.

NOTABLE ALUMS

Two KU graduates, business leaders Cynthia Carroll and Linda Zarda Cook, are among the world's 100 most powerful women, according to Forbes magazine. Carroll, a 1982 grad, is seventh on the list and the first woman to become chief executive at Anglo American, one of the world's largest independent mining companies. At 44th on the list is Linda Zarda Cook, a 1980 grad. Now the executive director of gas and power for Royal Dutch Shell, Cook is in the running to become CEO of the company in 2009.