The current Dean of Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership, Dr. Shelley Nuss, will be the first dean to lead the University of Georgia School of Medicine.
“There is no one better equipped to lead this important initiative than Dr. Shelley Nuss, with her exemplary, widely recognized leadership in medical education,” UGA President, Jere Morehead is quoted in the news release. “I look forward to working with her as we seek LCME (Liaison Committee on Medical Education) accreditation and build an outstanding medical school in the coming years.”
This fulfills a goal Gov. Brian Kemp outlined in his January 10 presentation to the annual Eggs and Issues Breakfast, sponsored by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
He earmarked $50 million to establish the school to address the state’s medical workforce gap.
“With these new assets on the way, we will further address the growing need for healthcare professionals in our state and ensure that we are doing everything we can to address challenges across the healthcare spectrum, from workforce, to cost, to access, to quality,” he told the state’s business leaders.
Currently, Georgia is the largest state with just one public medical school.
The state is ranked 40th for the number of active patient care physicians per capita in the U.S.
Additionally, the news release announcing Dr. Nuss will lead the new school said, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges, Georgia ranks No. 41 for the number of primary care physicians per capita and No. 44 for the number of general surgeons per capita. The shortage of medical providers is particularly acute in rural and underserved communities.
In his February 20 State of the College Address, Dr. David Hess, Dean of the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) pointed out even more shortages.
“If you actually look at the Georgia Report for Health Care Workforce, there are nine counties that have no physicians at all, 18 counties with no family medicine physicians, 40 counties with no internists, 65 counties with no pediatricians, 80 counties with no OB/GYNs, 80 counties with no general surgeons and 73 counties with no emergency medicine,” he reported.
Hess said the shortages are particularly critical in rural areas.
“So much is where you live. Zip code is more important than genetic code. It’s where you live. The doctors and the access is important,” he said. “If we don’t address these health disparities, we’re not going to necessarily improve the health of Georgia in these areas. So keep that in mind.”
Until the new school receives LCME accreditation, students will continue to enroll in MCG’s Athens campus, created by the 2009 medical partnership with UGA, and will continue to be MCG students. The earliest inaugural class will be in the fall of 2027.
While working to secure the accreditation, Dr. Nuss who has held the dean position at Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership since 2016, said she is honored to serve as the founding dean.
“The School of Medicine will build upon the strong foundation we have already established in Athens and will have a tremendous impact in addressing the ongoing physician shortage,” she’s quoted in the news release. “I’m excited to lead this next chapter of medical education at the University of Georgia and look forward to collaborating with partners both on and off campus.”
