Partners HealthCare to assume management of Harvard Medical International

Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Harvard University today (April 25) announced that they have finalized an agreement with Partners HealthCare under which Partners will assume responsibility for business operations and management of Harvard Medical International. The new entity will be known as Partners Harvard Medical International (PHMI).

The agreement was reached following discussions between Partners and Harvard about the best positioning of Harvard Medical International for the future. Leaders from both organizations agree HMI’s portfolio has expanded from the more traditional arena of medical education to increasingly include assistance with health system improvement. Positioning HMI as part of a health care system with clinical service capabilities will enable HMI to better serve its client base and more directly address health care needs around the world.

“The transfer of HMI to Partners HealthCare will help Harvard Medical School in focusing its international activities on its central mission of education and research,” said Jeffrey Flier, Dean of the Medical School, “and will allow HMI to expand its mission.”

Partners Harvard Medical International will retain the current HMI staff to ensure that ongoing projects, including major contracts in the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, benefit from a continuity of management and the expanded capabilities of the new arrangement. HMI’s prominent role in the development of Dubai Healthcare City in the United Arab Emirates will remain unchanged. In addition, PHMI will continue to provide a broad array of opportunities for members of the HMS community to participate in international activities.

Since its inception in 1994, HMI has been a self-supporting, not-for-profit subsidiary of Harvard University. It has used its close links to the Medical School, its faculty, and its affiliated institutions to extend the Medical School’s tradition of improving the quality of health care through excellence in clinical medicine, medical education, and biomedical research to a global community. Through numerous partnerships with health care delivery organizations, academic medical institutions, and other key stakeholders, HMI has played a major role in the development of health and education infrastructure abroad. HMI’s more than 50 programs have provided training and education for hundreds of physicians, nurses, health care leaders, and medical students from around the world. Collaborations based on clinical and administrative quality improvement have led to regional, national, and international recognition for HMI and its partner institutions.

“Partners is very pleased to have an opportunity to increase our involvement in the international health care arena by collaborating with a well-established organization that has an excellent reputation around the world,” said Jay B. Pieper, vice president of Partners HealthCare and president of Partners International Medical Services. “HMS’s reputation for medical education, HMI’s knowledge and experience in the global health care arena and Partners’ extensive clinical resources create a formidable synergy. This will permit PHMI to take the international contributions and engagements of our faculty and institutions to a higher level.”

“HMI’s work over the last 14 years has been possible in large part due to the unwavering support from the leadership of Harvard Medical School, as well as the tremendous intellectual resources of its faculty,” said Andrew A. Jeon, MD, president and chief executive officer of PHMI. “We anticipate that as part of Partners, we will be able to expand our mission to increase access to quality health care in countries across the world, while maintaining a vital academic partnership with the Medical School and its affiliated institutions.”

It is expected that as Partners Harvard Medical International, the organization will build on its diverse portfolio of international service. Its programs and partnerships will continue to draw upon the experience and expertise of faculty and staff across Harvard University, at all of the HMS-affiliated teaching hospitals and institutes, and on the Quad at the Medical School.

“In addition to facilitating innovative approaches to medical education and clinical care, HMI has been instrumental in creating opportunities for Harvard faculty to teach around the world and contribute knowledge and resources to the development of health care and education systems,” said Harvard Provost Steven Hyman. “We are confident that Partners will use its business and administrative knowledge to allow Partners Harvard Medical International to become an even more significant force in improving global health care.”

Partners HealthCare is an integrated, academic health system founded in 1994 by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition to its two academic medical centers, the Partners system includes community and specialty hospitals, community health centers, a physician network, home health and long-term care services, and other health-related entities. Partners is one of the nation’s leading biomedical research organizations and a major teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. Partners HealthCare is a non-profit organization.