Farrell to complete Medical School deanship in 2005

Philip M. Farrell, who has served as dean of the Medical School for more than a decade, today (Dec. 21) announced his intention not to seek reappointment after completing his current five-year term in December 2005.

He will also relinquish his position as UW–Madison vice chancellor for medical affairs, a responsibility he assumed in 2001.

The pediatric pulmonologist plans to concentrate on research, clinical practice and public health initiatives related to cystic fibrosis (CF), a life-threatening respiratory illness that begins during infancy.

Farrell has led the Medical School through a vibrant period of growth, emphasizing a variety of synergistic strategic priorities aimed at making the school nationally preeminent. He has provided leadership for major organizational transformations of the Medical School, the UW Medical Foundation — the school’s group practice — and UW Hospital and Clinics.

“It’s appealing to finish up in a time of triumph, with the school on a great upward trajectory,” says Farrell, adding that almost all of his goals will be achieved during the coming year. “The recent approval given by the State Building Commission for our Interdisciplinary Research Complex (IRC), the final component of the HealthStar initiative, culminates many accomplishments at the school in the past 10 years. I’m gratified to have been able to contribute so much to the institution that has been my professional home for 27 years.”

Chancellor John D. Wiley says Farrell’s accomplishments came during a crucial period, both for the health-care industry and for the university.

“He has led the school through extraordinary challenges and changes in health care, helped organize the merger with Physicians Plus and was key to restructuring the hospital as a public authority,” Wiley says. “His leadership and organizational ability led to major advances at a difficult time.”

During his tenure as dean, Farrell has worked tirelessly to build the west side of the campus into a thriving center of health science activities.

“It is shaping up to be the premier health science campus in the nation,” he says, noting that construction of the IRC, expected to begin next summer, will complete the picture for the Medical School by bringing many more basic science and translational researchers, currently working in outdated laboratories on central campus, to west campus.

This past spring, Farrell celebrated the opening of the Health Sciences Learning Center (HSLC), a project he initiated in 1996 with then-Gov. Tommy Thompson. With the Ebling Library as its centerpiece, the building is the hub of interdisciplinary health science learning at UW–Madison. The HSLC also serves as the Medical School’s new home base.

Wiley says the buildings are “tangible evidence of Dean Farrell’s leadership — and world-class facilities — that will make for better health-care professionals.”

Farrell has devoted enormous energy to bringing the $300 million Wisconsin Partnership Fund for a Healthy Future — the Blue Cross program — to fruition, leading the program over many hurdles from its beginning in June 1999.

“The Wisconsin Partnership recently achieved a major milestone — awarding grants to develop unique academic-community partnerships aimed at solving some of the most troubling health problems in our state,” he says. “The Wisconsin Partnership will allow UW Medical School to advance the Wisconsin Idea more effectively than ever. The outcome will be improved health statewide for generations to come.”

The Wisconsin Partnership will also help transform UW Medical School into an integrated school of medicine and public health, Farrell says.

“I believe that the leading medical schools of the 21st century will make this transformation, which shifts our attention from concentrating on health care in response to individual illness and injury to a more balanced approach emphasizing prevention efforts promoting health in the larger population,” he says. “The Medical School’s new Master’s in Public Health degree program, which enrolls its first students next fall, is an important step in this direction.”

Wiley agrees the partnership was a major accomplishment.

“His sound judgment helped guide its creation, and build bridges to both communities and to research,” the chancellor says. “The school will miss his special ability to balance teaching, strategic planning, primary care and outreach.”

The dean has made interaction with medical students a top priority. “My wife, Alice, and I have often said that ‘this is the joy of the job,’ as students share their perceptions about their experiences and their hopes for the future with us,” he says.

Farrell says he is extremely pleased with student morale and the overall health of the school’s educational enterprise. Following an evaluation two years ago by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the main accrediting body for medical schools, the school earned eight years, the maximum accreditation allowed, with recommendations for only four improvements, all of which are being addressed successfully.

Organizationally, Farrell has brought much-needed stability and leadership to the school. When he took office, he faced many departmental chair vacancies and administrative difficulties. He has appointed 20 new chairs in the school’s 26 departments, eight associate deans, and five center and institute directors. He garnered national recognition for the school by instituting an innovative program that allocates fiscal resources based on academic productivity.

Strategic planning has been a hallmark of Farrell’s two terms. When he became dean he quickly seized upon the concept, uncommon at academic medical centers at the time, and led the school through its first strategic-planning exercise. A significant component of the newest strategic plan, the school’s fourth, is that it incorporates the UW Medical Foundation. As dean, Farrell provided leadership, with Dr. Venkat Rao, for establishing the group practice, which has enhanced and expanded clinical operations while increasing support for academic programs.

Under Farrell’s watch, private philanthropy to the school has topped $600 million, with the school’s endowment increasing from $35 million in 1995 to $435 million today. Annual research funding during the same period grew phenomenally, from $95 million in his first year to the current level of $236 million, an amount equaling just over one-third of all UW–Madison research funding.

All aspects of research and research training have expanded, he notes, including activity in the basic, clinical and population health sciences, as well as the bridging translational research, particularly in priority areas such as aging, women’s health, cancer, cardio-respiratory sciences and neuroscience. A physician investigator himself, Farrell is particularly proud that the MD/PhD program and an array of doctoral programs are flourishing.

Before becoming dean, Farrell was chair of the Department of Pediatrics for 10 years and medical director of UW Children’s Hospital for eight years. After a two-year fellowship at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) early in his career, he joined the UW faculty in 1977. Farrell earned both medical and doctoral degrees from St. Louis University, and he completed his internship and residency at UW Hospital and Clinics.

Farrell has continued his NIH-supported research while serving as dean. His studies and development of a model CF newborn screening program in Wisconsin — one of the first in the country — are paying dividends today. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recently issued a report recommending that other states consider adopting such programs to ensure early diagnosis of this genetic disease.

When Farrell vacates the dean’s office, he plans to turn his attention to helping implement the Wisconsin model in other states and countries. He expects to devote sabbatical time to the CDC in Atlanta, analyzing and pursuing options for enhanced quality assurance of CF newborn screening programs.

“For me, it’s been a blessing to have had this long-term leadership opportunity following my chairmanship of pediatrics. With the majority of my UW–Madison faculty years devoted to a combination of intensive administration and academic endeavors, I’m now looking forward to a time in my life that allows me to truly focus on my passion for improving children’s health through research discoveries and their application,” Farrell says. “I am confident that the school is well-prepared to progress with great momentum toward preeminence.”

The university will conduct a national search for a successor.