Students graduating with an associate degree from either Lehigh Carbon Community College (LCCC) or Northampton Community College (NCC) can receive a renewable 50% tuition discount at Drexel
Dr. Ann Bieber –
University as part of the university’s new Drexel Promise Program.
The program, which begins in fall 2023, is designed to increase the accessibility and affordability of a Drexel degree.
“This is an incredible opportunity for our students at LCCC, and we thank Drexel University for providing an equitable pathway, through the Drexel Promise Program, for students to attain their higher education goals,” said Dr. Ann Bieber, president of Lehigh Carbon Community College.
“Affordability is such a large hurdle for many college students, but especially so for those attending community colleges who come from lower income backgrounds,” said Dr. David Ruth, president of Northampton Community College. “The Drexel Promise Program
David Ruth –
addresses that head on and will open the door for many of our students who are focused on transferring to a four-year institution to earn a bachelor’s degree.”
There is no additional form or application required for graduates from LCCC or NCC to be considered for the program. However, to be eligible students must be enrolled full-time, on-campus and maintain a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA for a maximum of 12 academic quarters.
For information about transferring from Lehigh Carbon Community College, contact Fauzia Graham, LCCC’s transfer advisor, at [email protected] or call 610-799-1691. For information about transferring from Northampton Community College, call 610-861-5346 or email [email protected]
St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Philadelphia, has received more than $50 million is financial support from health care and higher education organizations to keep it afloat.
Sue Perrotty –
The hospital which was bought by Tower Health and Drexel University in 2019 to keep it from bankruptcy, will receive financial support from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University and Einstein Healthcare Network (now part of Jefferson Health), Temple Health, and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine—and private donors over the next two years, Tower Health said.
The money will provide short-term financial stability as St. Christopher’s works to solidify other funding. The hospital provides services to an underserved community facing obstacles to accessing quality healthcare, Tower Health said.
An anonymous donor has provided $1.5 million to establish a professional fundraising team for the hospital, which will be supported by the Drexel Institutional Advancement team. Additional efforts to grow private philanthropic support for St. Christopher’s are also well underway.
“I am tremendously grateful to our local healthcare organizations and universities for coming together in support of St. Christopher’s Hospital,” said John Fry, president of Drexel University. “Their commitment will help to secure the future of this great hospital that is a unique civic treasure, an invaluable asset for medical education, and above all, a mission-driven institution that delivers outstanding pediatric care to families in North Philadelphia and across the region.”
Sue Perrotty, president and CEO of Tower Health said she is also grateful for the support, saying, “St. Christopher’s is irreplaceable not only to the patients and community it serves, but also as part of Philadelphia’s role as a center of medical education and research, with more than 130 residents and fellows, 360 visiting residents from other schools, and over 500 other students in allied health fields.”
St. Christopher’s President and CEO Don Mueller said the hospital has been working to fix its financial issues over the past two-and-a-half years.
“While we have made significant financial improvement, we have more work to do. This funding will provide the support we need as we work to create a sustainable long-term future for St. Christopher’s,” he said. “We’ll be able to focus on further enhancing our current programs and developing new ones, to better address the substantial needs of our patients and their families.”
Mueller said that St. Christopher’s future will be based on a combination of four “pillars:” effective management of resources; funding support from federal, state and city governments; philanthropy; and fair reimbursement for the cost of providing services to patients insured by Medicaid.
Medicaid reimburses hospitals less than the cost of care. With 82% of its patients covered by Medicaid, St. Christopher’s has the highest Medicaid percentage of any pediatric academic medical center in the United States.
“St. Christopher’s cannot survive just on Medicaid,” said Mueller. “This new approach for the hospital— combining the support of leading healthcare organizations and government along with philanthropy—is our best chance to ensure that children and families who need great care will continue to get it.”
Officials from Tower Health and Drexel University cut the ribbon on the new Drexel University College of Medicine in Wyomissing. PHOTO/SUBMITTED –
Tower Health has officially opened its Drexel University College of Medicine in Wyomissing.
A ribbon cutting was held Tuesday at the new medical school campus at 50 Innovation Way.
“Our medical students have been receiving their clinical education at Reading Hospital through a long-standing academic affiliation agreement and have been making an impact on medical care in Berks County for decades,” said John Fry, president of Drexel University. “Our new campus will increase their engagement with both patients and the community, and provide greater opportunities to train and go on to be leaders in medicine, especially in areas in need of more physicians.”
The College of Medicine will welcome its first class of 40 first-year medical students on Aug. 2.
Students from Drexel medical school already receive training from faculty physicians at Tower Health’s Reading Hospital, which is about a mile from the school campus.
The new building has patient exam rooms, an anatomy laboratory, small group learning areas and simulation labs.
It was designed to enhance student life with a focus on student health and wellness and encourage immersive learning.
In the building the students have access to a fitness center, library, lounge areas, a game room and a café.
As part of Tower Health’s recent partnership with Philadelphia’s Drexel University, 110 clinicians and staff from Drexel Medicine joined Tower Health Medical Group, effective Jan. 1.
Tower Health’s Reading HealthPlex in West Reading. -file image
Accepting offers from Reading-based health network were 52 physicians, 10 advanced practice clinicians, and 48 support staff. More are expected to join in the near future, according to Tower Health.
“We are pleased to have more than 100 new team members join Tower Health,” said Clint Matthews, president and CEO of Tower Health, which signed a letter of intent to form the combined academic medicine physician practice in May of 2019.
Tower Health aims to expand the health network’s clinical footprint through the combined Drexel/Tower Health practice, and increase opportunities for medical student clinical rotations and for clinical research.
Tower Health and Drexel University have entered into an agreement to acquire St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children. The 189-bed, 144 year old for-profit children’s hospital, located in the city of Philadelphia, was sold to the two organizations for $50 million.
The sale was approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware Sept. 24.
The sale is part of the process to resolve the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed by American Academic Health Systems LLC, of which Center City Healthcare, owner and operator of St. Christopher’s, is a subsidiary.
Officials from Tower and Drexel plan on keeping the 144 year old hospital intact.
“Tower Health and Drexel are committed to the North Philadelphia community – including the more than 30,000 children who depend on the hospital for their primary care and the 70,000 children served annually by the hospital’s emergency department – as well as its growing network of primary and specialty care locations throughout the Philadelphia suburbs and New Jersey,” said Clint Matthews, president and CEO of Tower Health.
The hospital has served as a training site for Drexel University College of Medicine students for over 20 years. Drexel’s third and fourth year residents complete their hospital-based clinical rotations in pediatrics at St. Christopher’s.
Tower Health and Drexel will assume operations of the hospital prior to the end of the year, and plan on keeping all current operations at the hospital intact.
The new owners said that they expect the hospital’s owner transition to be “seamless.”
Tower Health, the Berks County-based health network, has announced it will assume responsibility for the majority of resident physicians displaced by the closing of Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia, according to a press release.
Philadelphia Academic Health System, the owner of Hahnemann University Hospital, said on June 26th that the 171-year old, 495-bed hospital would close in September.
Under a letter of intent, Tower Health will continue the training of residents and fellows in Hahnemann’s programs, while giving physicians the right to be placed in one of Tower Health’s six hospitals, many of which are close to Hahnemann.
“We have been working hard with Drexel to find a solution for the residency and fellowship programs for everyone involved,” said Joel Freedman, president of Hahnemann. Freedman said the transfer will allow the residents to remain in the greater Philadelphia area and keep their training cohort intact.
Tower Health and Drexel University recently signed a 20-year agreement to establish a four-year regional campus of the Drexel University College of Medicine in West Reading near Reading Hospital. The campus is scheduled to open in 2021.
rendering of four-year regional campus of the Drexel University College of Medicine in West Reading near Reading Hospital. – submitted
“We welcome the residents and fellows to Tower Health and look forward to working with them,” said Clint Matthews, Tower Health’s president and CEO.
Tower Health will provide free on-site housing for physicians training at Reading Hospital, free meals while in any Tower Health hospital, and other amenities.
Tower Health will also seek to hire faculty who are currently training the residents and fellows to ensure continuity of Hahnemann and Drexel training programs.
“This is a natural next step in the growing relationship between Tower Health and Drexel University, which includes our recently announced 20-year academic affiliation and the initiative to explore combining the Tower Health Medical Group and Drexel University Physicians practices,” said John Fry, president of Drexel University.
The letter of intent has been submitted to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for approval. The proposed transfer is scheduled to be completed by Aug. 1, unless it takes longer to obtain the necessary governmental and regulatory approvals.
Tower Health, based in Reading, is a health network that includes six hospitals, 22 urgent care facilities and more than 12,000 employees.
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