UNE medical school’s move to Portland will allow it to grow and train more doctors
New England Council member, the University of New England, will move its medical school from Biddeford to Portland. This new location will allow the University to expand the size of its facilities to accommodate more students which will provide relief to the ongoing workforce problem in the healthcare industry.
This move will fast-track the city of Portland to be a regional hub for biotechnology and medicine. The University could break ground on this new construction in a month thanks to the Portland Planning Board unanimously approving the plans. The intended construction will feature a 112,000 sqft, four-story central building to hold all the University’s healthcare programs including dentistry, nursing and the medical school.
UNE’s new facility will advance the college’s efforts in interprofessional education, an approach to training in which students are taught in a team-based, multidisciplinary setting. The new location will increase the number of students the medical program can accommodate by 20 percent raising the classes from 165 to 200 students. Additionally, the new facility will allow Maine Med doctors to engage with UNE students because of the proximity to their facilities. This opens the doors to mentorship, teaching and continuing education in a lab setting for students.
UNE President, James Herbert said, “We are the workforce engine for the health care workforce in the state. I want UNE to be the national model for how you do IPE in rural settings” Herbert said.
The New England Council would like to commend the University of New England for its work to help solve the workforce crisis.
Read more in the Portland Press Herald.