Florida State University President Richard McCullough and Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare President and CEO Mark O’Bryant shared a stage Wednesday to announce a land designation and advisory committee for their new FSU Health-Academic Health Center.
McCullough and O’Bryant expressed how the dual announcement made the day a “glorious” and “transformational” one for both institutions as they shared the newest updates about the center to guests in TMH’s Dozier Atrium.
"As we look at this collaboration as a catalyst moment, this is going to set the path for activities around research, education, care and reshaping everything we do as it relates to quality of life and health in our community,” ‘O'Bryant said.
The land for the project is on the northeast sector of TMH’s campus off Centerville Road, near Tallahassee Community College’s Ghazvini Center for Healthcare Education. Once the center is built, it will include educational and medical spaces as well as research laboratories.
The announcement comes after FSU secured $125 million from Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature last year to establish the center.
TMH’s land grant to FSU will allow the university to get the ball rolling with the process of constructing the five-story building. From prepping the site to working with architects and constructors, McCullough says the construction process might take a couple of years.
The construction phase is expected to create about 1,200 jobs, and the center will support more than 1,500 jobs annually.
“A year and a half ago, we set forward with this audacious idea,” McCullough said. “FSU Health is not a small vision, but a large vision — one that will continue to make this already-amazing health care that we have in Tallahassee even better.”
The plan is still to have the center take up 130,000 square feet. To give an idea of the center’s vastness, O’Bryant added that it will include a 700-space parking area.
While the new center is being planned, other accomplishments through FSU and TMH’s teamwork include the recent groundbreaking of the new health care campus in Panama City Beach along with the St. Joe Company.
The campus will consist of an 80,000-square-foot medical office building that will open in 2024 and a 100-bed hospital slated to be completed in 2027, according to the university.
With the Panama City campus and the new academic health center underway, the projects will expand the university’s health research portfolio while they also work toward alleviating the current need for more physicians and nurses in North Florida.
In FSU and TMH’s efforts of being provided with guidance during their continued partnership, they formed the “Transformation Committee" advisory group of 10 community members, where FSU and TMH each made five appointments.
The committee will be chaired by Kevin Nolan — a partner at the global consulting firm Guidehouse — who will help ensure that the committee assists FSU and TMH in maximizing the value of their partnership moving forward.
Here are the five members of the committee that McCullough appointed:
- Jorge Gonzalez (FSU trustee, St. Joe Company president and CEO)
- Nan Hillis (FSU Real Estate Center executive board member)
- Kathy Mears (Commissioner of Agriculture’s chief of staff)
- Reverend R.B. Holmes (pastor of Bethel Missionary Baptist Church)
- Bill Smith (Capital City Bank chairman and CEO)
The other five committee members who were appointed by O’Bryant are:
- Winston Howell (former TMH board chair, shareholder and chairman emeritus of Thomas Howell Ferguson PA)
- Andrew Wong (former TMH board chair, orthopedic surgeon at Tallahassee Orthopedic Clinic)
- Martha Barnett (former TMH board chair)
- Steve Evans (former TMH board chair)
- Lee Hinkle (former TMH board chair)
“I’m a lawyer by profession, but I come from a medical family,” Barnett said. “I have always viewed my life through the lens of someone who saw the impact that having hands-on, 24/7, personal attention and care made in the lives of people. If I can take some of my early childhood experiences and my commitment to making that kind of health care available to everyone, that would be a goal for me.”
Building a health care ecosystem: FSU leaders create FSU Health roadmap
Florida State University officials have been working to lay the groundwork for FSU Health, a health care ecosystem poised to transform health care delivery in North Florida.
“FSU Health will reshape patient care, education and research throughout Florida,” said FSU President Richard McCullough. “The Florida Panhandle is booming and the possibilities — and needs — in our region have never been greater. We are at a very exciting time as we lay the foundation for this monumental project.”
Over the past several years, Florida State University has been growing its health research portfolio while also pursuing partnerships with major health care systems throughout North Florida, including Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, Mayo Clinic and others. But the decision by the Florida Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis to award FSU $125 million to build the academic health center of the future kicked those efforts into high gear.
Over the summer, university leadership established formal working groups to identify opportunities and develop a road map to facilitate expansion of the FSU Health ecosystem, in research, education, clinical affairs and facilities. To facilitate this effort, the university partnered with the global consulting firm Guidehouse to systematically review research, education and clinical opportunities, with involvement of faculty, administration, and staff from across the campus.
The university has also started working with a design partner on the academic health center.
“This is the most ambitious intellectual project the university has ever taken on and will change the face of the university for the next 100 years,” said Provost Jim Clark. “We are taking a systematic approach to make sure that we get this right.”
“This is the most ambitious intellectual project the university has ever taken on and will change the face of the university for the next 100 years. We are taking a systematic approach to make sure that we get this right.”
— Provost Jim Clark
When McCullough arrived at FSU in August 2021, he saw an opportunity for FSU to make an even bigger impact on the region, specifically in the Panhandle where there are fewer medical providers and treatment options. The university through its College of Medicine has a commitment to train primary care physicians who will help provide care to underserved populations. Through FSU Health, the university will build on that legacy by expanding its clinical research programs and exploring innovative digital health care solutions.
“The timing for this couldn’t be better,” Clark said. “A number of initiatives are gelling at just the right time with the arrival of new faculty members and administrators who are committed to this project.”
Among the new hires is Vice President for Research Stacey Patterson as well as two new faculty members in the College of Nursing who will bring significant National Institutes of Health funding and new expertise to the university. The university is also wrapping up a search for a new dean for the College of Medicine.
While the university continues to work out the details of the Tallahassee Center, it is also actively working on FSU Health projects in Panama City. The Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, a 55 plus living community in Panama City, includes space for FSU Health.
McCullough, Clark and Patterson recently engaged in a weeklong tour throughout the Panhandle visiting health care professionals, entrepreneurs, educators, developers, the military and others interested in health care delivery. Discussing how FSU Health can help serve the needs of the Panhandle was a focal point for discussions.
“We have a real opportunity to create meaningful change for Panhandle residents who currently drive several hours to Tallahassee, Gainesville or Mobile for their medical needs,” Patterson said. “The FSU Health initiative can create better care options while also creating jobs, educational opportunities and a major expansion of research and development in the region.”
