Tackling the persistent and chronic health ills that ail a community requires a unified, coordinated effort imbued with ambition and the determination to make a lasting difference in the care available to residents.
All evidence suggests that’s what Hampton Roads can expect from the pending merger of Old Dominion University and Eastern Virginia Medical School. With Norfolk State University as an academic partner, and additional support from Sentara Health, the resulting effort should bring about a needed revolution in regional health care that will change the landscape for the better.
On June 7, nearly a thousand people filled a hotel conference room in downtown Norfolk to mark the start of something special. In a few week’s time, the long anticipated ODU-EVMS merger will be finalized, uniting the region’s only university with a Research 1 designation with its only medical school.
This union has been a long time in the making, and getting it over the line on July 1 will be an achievement worth celebrating across Hampton Roads.
Only a few years ago, the possibility of realizing this dream seemed out of reach. EVMS, founded 50 years ago, was fiercely proud of its status as one of only three stand-alone medical schools in the country. But financial uncertainty made exploring new options a must, despite pushback inside and outside the institution.
Some officials there initially bristled at suggestions the school merge with Old Dominion, rejecting a study funded in part by Sentara Health. But when the acrimony subsided and the smoke cleared, the path forward was obvious.
What emerged was a plan to pull together not only ODU and EVMS, but Norfolk State. Only a year after dismissing the merger study, the three institutions agreed to work toward launching the O.N.E. School of Public Health, a joint program to tackle chronic ills in the region and advance health equity.
Months later, leaders of ODU, EVMS and Sentara pledged to work toward a formal integration of the two schools, an agreement that will result in a new academic health center focused on regional needs and preparing the next generation of health professionals for Hampton Roads and Virginia.
What stands out in those two initiatives is four leading regional institutions joining forces to bring their considerable experience and resources to bear on a pressing public concern. That’s not as common as it should be in a region that often splits over parochial interests rather than coming together for the common good.
That was further buttressed through the enthusiastic support of federal, state and local officials representing Hampton Roads and the commonwealth. Gov. Glenn Youngkin and his predecessor Ralph Northam both worked toward this union. And the General Assembly made this a priority in the state budget, adding to Sentara’s $350 million commitment.
At the introductory celebration this month came additional financial backing from generous private donors.
A $20 million endowment from Dennis and Jan Ellmer will provide scholarships for students in health science programs, with recipients obligated to work in the region after earning their degrees. The Ellmer College of Health Sciences and the Ellmer School of Nursing were named in their honor.
And a $20 million gift from philanthropist Joan Brock, wife of the late Dollar Tree co-founder Macon Brock, will be reflected in the naming of the Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at ODU, which includes the EVMS School of Health Professions, the joint School of Public Health, the Ellmer College of Health Sciences, the Ellmer School of Nursing and the Eastern Virginia School of Medicine at ODU.
Hampton Roads has long needed a new, innovative vision for health care and, thanks to so many people and institutions pulling in the same direction, that ambitious era is set to begin on July 1. All those involved deserve our appreciation for overcoming numerous obstacles and putting our region on the path to better access, better care and better outcomes in the years to come.
