Marian University is helping launch a new statewide healthcare partnership that leaders say could expand medical training, improve rural healthcare access and attract more research funding to Indiana.
The Crossroads Academic Medical Institute brings together Marian University, Purdue University and healthcare systems across the state in what organizers describe as a “distributed academic medical center.”
Instead of being built around one major hospital campus, the institute would connect universities, hospitals and clinical training sites across Indiana.
Marian University President Dan Elsener said the initiative is designed to strengthen medical education and healthcare access while increasing research collaboration.
“You get a lot of smart, mission-driven people together that want to improve a situation, we can't even imagine that creativity will come out of it,” he said.
The partnership includes Community Health Network, Ascension St. Vincent, Parkview Health and several rural healthcare organizations.
Elsener said one of the biggest problems facing Indiana is retaining healthcare workers after they complete medical school.
“Our state is educating 500 and some doctors a year,” he said. “We only have 300 and some residency slots…so we got a problem here.”
He said many medical students leave Indiana for residency programs in neighboring states and never return.
The institute hopes to address that by expanding residency and clinical training opportunities, particularly in rural communities.
Elsener said rural healthcare systems often struggle to recruit providers because of isolation and staffing shortages. He said the partnership could help smaller hospitals connect with larger systems and academic institutions.
“We see healthcare going forward as more of a team effort,” he said.
The initiative also aims to increase research activity in Indiana. Elsener noted that neighboring states receive far more National Institutes of Health research funding than Indiana.
He said leaders hope the collaboration will attract more researchers, physicians and private investment to the state over time.
“Everybody’s going to win,” Elsener said. “You’re going to get better care, lower cost, better talent, more research dollars.”
Leaders involved in the project say additional healthcare and research partners are expected to join in the coming months.
