The dean of Detroit-based Wayne State University's medical school on Tuesday said that Detroit Medical Center offers only minimal contributions to the university and it will look for other hospital partners to help it achieve its plan for regional healthcare, according to The Detroit News.
"We've recognized that our input and the contribution of the DMC to our lives in the medical school has been minimal," WSU School of Medicine Dean Jack Sobel, MD, said Tuesday in an email sent to the medical school, according to the report. "They contribute nothing to education, nothing to research on this campus, and it would appear that our courses are really incompatible."
DMC CEO Joseph Mullany said Tuesday he was surprised to learn of Dr. Sobel's comments, as Wayne State University Physician Group reached a new contract to provide services to DMC two months ago.
"DMC officials met with Dean Sobel just last week and had a very positive meeting about the future," Mr. Mullany said, according to the report. "But I am not surprised as DMC board members say this has been said for the past 20 years whenever things are going bad at WSU. DMC will continue to focus on the health needs of patients in our area and teaching DMC residents. We look forward to working with WSU on both."
Wayne State University spokesperson Matt Lockwood clarified the institution does not intend to cut ties with DMC. "All the dean is saying is to fulfill our vision, we may have to cultivate those existing partnerships and explore new ones," said Mr. Lockwood, according to the report.
While the medical school has hospital partners in addition to DMC, its partnership with DMC is the largest and oldest, spanning numerous decades, according to the report.