Expanding on Success

The University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford makes a powerful difference to Illinois. For over 35 years we have been examining health needs and how to meet those needs, training future generations of doctors, and conducting cutting edge research, while providing direct medical care to residents of both rural and urban communities through our clinics, our outreach initiatives and our alumni physicians.

Today, the University of Illinois is in a unique position to create a regional health sciences center on the Rockford campus that will be one of the first of its kind in the country, bringing medicine and pharmacy students together into an inter-disciplinary program. Illinois parallels national trends with anticipated shortages of doctors, most notably in family medicine, by 2020. Where physicians are now scarce, so are other health professionals. Rockford's ratio of licensed pharmacists to its population is well below national levels, and rural communities also have notable shortages of pharmacists, nurses, dentists, social workers and public health administrators.

Expansion of the University's National Center for Rural Health Professions will give us a home to study healthcare disparities between rural and urban Illinois residents, and help us train professionals to bridge this gap so that all Illinoisans can enjoy access to quality healthcare.

With the vision transforming Rockford into one of the preeminent health sciences campuses in the country, the University of Illinois has committed $14.25 million toward renovating the existing facilities and adding a 58,000 square foot building. A $5 million federal earmark has been pledged to bring this expansion to the Rockford campus. Now, the University is embarking on a campaign to raise an additional $12 million toward construction and renovation that will provide the facilities to position Rockford into truly being a leader in academic healthcare .