Panel Hears Plans for Medical School

By Lindy Washburn

Touro University College of Medicine, which plans to open a new medical school in Westwood in September 2009, finished hosting a three-day visit from the group that accredits medical schools.

A three-member team from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education visited TouroMed’s Hackensack administrative offices from Sunday through Tuesday.

TouroMed and Hackensack University Medical Center won the auction to buy the shuttered Pascack Valley Hospital in Westwood last week, with a combined offer of $45 million. The sale is to be approved by a Bankruptcy Court judge on March 18.

The two plan to use the Westwood facilities for teaching as well as an emergency department and some acute-care services.

The next step in the accreditation process will take place at the Liaison Committee’s June meeting. If the committee approves TouroMed’s advancement from “candidate status” to “preliminary accreditation,” the school can recruit students. It hopes to enroll a class of 40 in August 2009.

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