Since I joined the DOM five years ago, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing remarkable growth and progress. Over this time, we’ve grown by nearly 100 faculty members and increased our outpatient visit volume, research funding, and training opportunities for residents and fellows.

At our last town hall, I shared our vision to build on that progress over the next five years. (If you missed it, you can access the recording in Box.) 

This vision centers on three key priorities:

• Enhancing collaboration and efficiency across our system to improve patient access.
• Strengthening training and support to recruit and retain exceptional faculty.
• Diversifying funding sources to sustain and grow our research and education missions.

With changes in federal policies, seeking alternative sources of funding for our academic work will be essential. This includes pursuing multi-investigator awards, training grants, industry partnerships, and philanthropic investments. To support these efforts, we must continue to build shared research resources, streamline clinical trial activation, and foster stronger collaboration with industry partners.

Expanding our training grants will allow us to further strengthen our education programs, attract and retain top-tier trainees and physician-scientists, and address workforce needs through new fellowship offerings. Additionally, increasing support for mentoring and career development programs will be vital. My vision also includes deploying residents and fellows to regional hospitals, not only to enhance their training but also to help meet the needs of the communities we serve.

Caring for our region is central to our mission. To better meet patients’ needs, we must operate as a cohesive team, collaborating across disciplines and specialties to provide holistic care. This means caring for the whole patient, not just individual organ systems. It also means meeting patients where they are. In the future, this could involve establishing ambulatory hubs and sharing providers across institutions in the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier regions. 

I hope you’ll join me in embracing this vision as we work together to implement our strategic plan and make our department ever better.

Be well,
Ruth O'Regan, MD