Partnering to Create NJ's Premier Academic Health Care System

July 27, 2017

Members of the Rutgers Community:

I am happy to announce that the University has entered into a formal collaboration with RWJBarnabas Health to create an academic health care system that will provide outstanding patient care, medical research, and medical education, strengthening health care across New Jersey. By joining with the state’s most comprehensive health care delivery system, we will be better able to recruit the very best academic and health care practitioners, deliver world-class health and medical education, and provide evidence-based health care.

This new venture brings together the RWJBarnabas health care system with Rutgers University and with Rutgers Health Group—our faculty practice of approximately 1,000 Rutgers-employed physicians, dentists, psychologists, nurses, pharmacists, and other health care professionals. All of our Rutgers Health Group clinical activities—including those at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care—will be included. Combined with the providers of RWJBarnabas Health, the result will be a 2,500-member, multi-specialty group that will be among the largest in the United States.

As spelled out in the Letter of Intent that we have signed, RWJBarnabas Health will lead and manage all clinical operations in coordination with Rutgers, while Rutgers will lead and manage the academic research functions in coordination with RWJBarnabas Health. The organizations will remain separate corporations: Rutgers faculty will remain Rutgers faculty, and Rutgers will provide clinical services to RWJBarnabas Health through Rutgers Health Group. In addition, RWJBarnabas Health will provide financial support to Rutgers in our research and health-related education through the transfer of its education programs to the University.

I applaud the superb efforts of Brian Strom, Chancellor of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and Executive Vice President for Health Affairs. This agreement is the result of many months of exploration and negotiation with our partners at RWJBarnabas Health, and Chancellor Strom’s leadership, energy, and vision have been crucial to its development. Let me also thank Barry Ostrowsky, president and CEO of RWJBarnabas Health, for all he has done to make this possible.

This affiliation is great news for Rutgers, as it will create the premier academic health system in the state and will provide our students with outstanding clinical and research opportunities. RWJBarnabas Health’s commitment to funding research and educational expansion at Rutgers will enable us to become a nationally recognized leader in academic medicine and provide a vital advantage as we continue to compete for federal research dollars.  

Entering into this collaboration will position Rutgers and RWJBarnabas Health well to develop new centers of excellence, excel in the preparation of world-class health care professionals, and improve the health of our fellow New Jersey residents. I can’t wait to get started.

The news release for this announcement is available here.

Sincerely,

Robert Barchi