NEW ORLEANS – On Jan. 17, Xavier University of Louisiana and Ochsner Health announced an agreement to establish a college of medicine. The two institutions plan to “create a strong physician pipeline that addresses longstanding inequities within the nation’s health care system and builds the health care workforce of the future,” according to a press release.
The school and the health system will form a nonprofit corporation, create a new curriculum and use the facilities, personnel and administrative processes of both institutions. The new college of medicine will be governed by a board of directors nominated by Ochsner and Xavier, with each institution appointing an equal number of directors.
This initiative builds on a longstanding partnership between Ochsner and Xavier that dates to the early 1980s, when Ochsner and Xavier’s College of Pharmacy came together to offer more clinical training sites for pharmacy students.
“Our work with Ochsner and other partners who hold close to their hearts a vision of healing a broken world is a testament to Xavier’s mission to promote a more just and humane society,” said Dr. Reynold Verret, president of Xavier University of Louisiana. “Xavier was bestowed that mission by our founders St. Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament almost a century ago. Our dedication to preparing more Black healthcare professionals in our fight against health inequity is our answer to the call of our nation’s critical need and makes their legacy proud.”
In 2020, the Xavier and Ochsner partnered to create new graduate programs in health sciences and established the Ochsner Health and Xavier University Institute for Health Equity and Research. A few years before, partnered to create a physician assistant program. In May 2022, Ochsner and Xavier celebrated the first graduating class of 37 students in the full-time graduate PA Program, which leads to a master’s degree in health sciences and trains the next generation of providers to make a meaningful impact on health care.
“Ochsner has a long and rich history of excellence in medical education, and we are honored to continue our work with Xavier to improve the health of our state and region,” said Pete November, CEO of Ochsner Health. “The Xavier medical students will get outstanding clinical training in our integrated health care system, and this significant expansion of our partnership with Xavier demonstrates our commitment to training the next generation of health care providers to solve the critical shortage of physicians in the United States and meet the needs of the diverse communities we serve.”
In 2022, Xavier became an integral advisory board partner for Healthy State by 2030, an ambitious plan to lift Louisiana off the bottom of national health rankings. Collectively, partners across multiple sectors and industries from across the state are committed to comprehensive public health initiatives, education, and outreach.
“Investing in education, training and workforce development is critical to building a healthier state and stronger communities. Our partnership with Xavier furthers our Healthy State mission of enhancing diversity among health care providers, which has been linked to better care for diverse communities of our region and throughout the nation,” said Dr. Leonardo Seoane, executive vice president and chief academic officer for Ochsner Health. “We must work together to solve the challenges faced in our health care workforce and ensure communities across the country have access to the highest quality of care.”
