By HFT Editorial Staff

Virtua Health and Rowan University have agreed to create a new academic health system and to further distinguish South Jersey as a regional hub for innovation, research and clinical discovery.

This partnership will create the Virtua Health College of Medicine & Health Sciences of Rowan University. The new college will encompass: the state’s only osteopathic medical school; an expanded nursing and allied health professions school; a new school of translational biomedical engineering and sciences; multiple new research institutes; and aligned clinical practices to improve patient care and train the workforce of the future.

Virtua Health is making a philanthropic investment of $85 million to Rowan University to create an endowment that will help support the partnership, fueling investments in faculty, educational programs and the construction of a state-of-the-art research facility.

The two organizations share an overarching commitment to improving the health of New Jersey residents and creating a series of meaningful opportunities to:

• Educate and train the state’s next generation of physicians, nurses and allied health professionals
• Innovate by researching, developing and testing new therapies, treatments, and models of care
• Increase health equity by meeting the needs of the underserved in the region.