Politicians, academics join forces for medical school
The government is understood to be considering integrating a new graduate entry college with an existing medical school.
Former Health Minister Michael Noonan accused Education Minister Mary Hanafin of trying to block the UL plan.
Minister Hanafin said the UL proposal was just one of a number being considered.
She said it would be inappropriate to comment further until the government has deliberated on it.
The man who has drawn up the Limerick college plan said experience in other countries showed that locating a graduate entry college at an existing medical college does not work.
Prof Paul Finucane, director of the UL graduate entry medical college said if the government gave the go-ahead to the UL graduate entry medical school, it could take in its first 120 students within 12 months.
He said: “UL wants to bring a radical new approach to Irish medical education. This would take advantage of all the innovations in medical education internationally in recent years. And it is only possible to develop this kind of innovative programme on a greenfield site.”
Prof Finucane said the UL college plan will also save the taxpayer money.
He said: “Ours will be a four-year programme, compared to five-year programmes in existing medical colleges, making it more cost-effective.”
But he said the great advantage UL offers was a greenfield campus location.
“It would be nonsense to fully integrate a graduate entry school of medicine with an existing medical school. International experience shows that where graduate entry medical colleges are integrated with existing medical colleges, it is very difficult to work and they struggle with it.”
