Building a healthy economy, creating a healthy state

The University of Nevada, Reno, Division of Health Sciences and University of Nevada Medical School contributes to Nevada's economic health, as well as the health of its people.

Governor Sandoval's economic development plan for Nevada identifies heath care as one of seven industries that are critical to the state's development. It is one to which higher education can make particular contributions through the division.

The health care sector has been one of the few bright spots in the Nevada's economy the past few years. From 2007 to 2010, Nevada employers shed nearly 176,000 jobs. During the same period, Nevada's health-services sector added more than 6,000 jobs. Nearly 90,000 Nevadans, 7.8 percent of the state's workforce, are employed in health services.

The contributions to the economic health of Nevada by the University of Nevada School of Medicine and the University of Nevada, Reno Division of Health Sciences are demonstrated in four specific roles:

* As an employer;

* As an innovator through research and development that attracts investment;

* As the source of the majority of new health care professionals in Nevada;

* And, as the source of new approaches to quality medical care that attracts new businesses to the state.

In fiscal year 2010-11, the School of Medicine employed 1,156 staff and faculty members, with total salaries and benefits of $105.7 million. An additional $52.1 million was spent on goods and services from other Nevada businesses. School of Medicine employees generated $285.3 million in economic activity in Nevada, including taxes that support a wide range of services. For every dollar spent by the School in 2010, another 81 cents in economic activity was generated in Nevada. This impact is leveraged by an additional 136 faculty and staff members employed throughout the rest of the Division.

National data show a return of $2.60 for every dollar invested in research at medical schools, teaching hospitals and health professions schools. The School of Medicine today has nearly $50 million in multiyear, federally sponsored grants for biomedical investigation into the causes and treatments for HIV, muscular dystrophy, preterm birth, breast cancer, intestinal disorders, infectious diseases, male infertility and battlefield injuries.

Research at medical schools supported by National Institutes of Health funding not only lead to many advances that help Americans live longer and healthier lives, it also creates skilled jobs and new products that generate economic growth. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the impact of National Institutes of Health-sponsored funding in Nevada is:

* Direct economic impact: $18,652,598

* Indirect economic impact: $29,844,156

* Total employment impact: 323 jobs

In addition, in 2012, the School of Medicine received $4.5 million in philanthropic pledges to be used to expand its clinical research enterprise. These projects not only significantly contribute to the state's economy, but also hold the potential to benefit the health of Nevadans and people across the globe.

The School of Medicine graduates 62 medical students and puts 80 new residency and fellowship graduates into the workforce annually. It will increase its class size to 100 students per year over the next several years. This semester, 69 students, 84 percent of whom are Nevada residents, entered the School as the Class of 2016. The school is working to expand the number and breadth of residency and fellowship training programs in the state. Of those who graduate from the school and pursue residency training here, 80 percent remain in state, helping to fill Nevada's gap in available health care. There are currently 2,712 alumni holding University of Nevada School of Medicine degrees.

Additional health care education, research and services provided by the University's Division of Health Sciences that make our state a more attractive place to work and live include:

* The Orvis School of Nursing graduates 96 nurses a year, and awards about another 50 degrees, including advanced degrees that prepare graduates for advanced clinical practice and leadership roles in the state's health care industry. One of the foremost challenges in health care today is the shortage of qualified nurses in both clinical practice and nursing education. With the lowest registered nurse to population ratio in the nation, the nursing shortage is critical in Nevada.

* The School of Community Health Sciences trains its graduates to improve public health and eliminate health disparities in Nevada. Many of its 68 graduates over the last academic year will fill positions within the state addressing important issues such as infectious disease tracking and control, health education and wellness programs.

* The School of Social Work's graduates work to eliminate poverty, oppression and injustice in Nevada. With high rates in societal problems such as domestic violence and suicide plaguing our state, the 72 graduates of the School last academic year are sorely needed to help address these problems in our state.

* The Center for Application of Substance Abuse Technologies provides training, technical assistance, evaluation and research to support the care of those suffering from substance abuse.

* The Sanford Center for Aging improves the quality of life for Nevada's older adults through education, research and community outreach.

Quality medical care is one of the two most important factors considered by businesses seeking to grow or relocate in Nevada. (The other is workforce education level.) The School of Medicine provided direct care for 408,000 annual patient visits last year, with clinical offices in Reno and Las Vegas, and hospital staffing at University Medical Center and the Veteran's Affairs Hospital in Las Vegas, and at Renown, Saint Mary's and the VA in Reno.

Medical students run monthly medical clinics for the underinsured populations of Washoe County supervised by volunteer faculty members.

The school also provides outreach to rural communities through telemedicine, consultant services and training. Select family medicine residents from the school's Las Vegas campus will complete the final two years of their residency at Humboldt General Hospital in Winnemucca beginning in 2013.

This is just a small sample of the many ways that the Division of Health Sciences contributes to the health, both economic and clinical, of the State of Nevada and its residents.

Thomas L. Schwenk, M.D., is vice president of the Division of Health Sciences at the University of Nevada, Reno and dean of the University of Nevada Medical School.