Tampa, FL (March 5, 2006) — Five reviewers appointed by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) conducted an onsite accreditation visit to the USF College of Medicine Feb. 26 to 28. The LCME is the nationally recognized accrediting authority for medical education programs leading to the M.D. degree in U.S. and Canadian medical schools.

“The visiting team was positive and excited by what we’re doing here,” said Stephen K. Klasko, MD, MBA, dean of the College of Medicine and vice president for USF Health. “A special thanks to vice dean for education, Dr. Paul Wallach, for leading our self-study and curriculum review. I applaud the extraordinary work that our faculty, staff and students put into the process and their commitment to make ours a student-centered program for students to earn the MD… Because of how you all approached this visit, we will be a better medical school.”

Dr. Klasko expects a draft of the site visitors report within eight weeks. The onsite team submits their report and any other relevant documentation to the LCME, which will review the report at its next regularly scheduled meeting in June. The LCME Secretariat will then communicate the outcome of the LCME’s deliberations, including the USF COM program’s accreditation status and any follow-up actions, in writing to USF President Judy Genshaft.

The USF medical program could earn reaccreditation for a maximum of eight years.

The USF COM Institutional Self-Study began in September 2005. The College had 10 self-study committees with more than 125 participants, covering institutional governance; intellectual, fiscal and physical resources, admissions and student support services and all aspects of the medical student curriculum.

The LCME is sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges and the American Medical Association.

– USF Health –

USF Health is a partnership of the University of South Florida’s colleges of medicine, nursing, and public health; the schools of basic biomedical sciences and physical therapy & rehabilitation sciences; and the USF Physicians Group. It is a partnership dedicated to the promise of creating a new model of health and health care. One of the nation’s top 63 public research universities as designated by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, USF received more than $310 million in research contracts and grants last year. It is ranked by the National Science Foundation as one of the nation’s fastest growing universities for federal research and development expenditures.