Howard Advances Major Healthcare Vision Through Partnership with DC Mayor's Office

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Howard University President Wayne A. I. Frederick and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced a partnership to support a citywide healthcare network that will serve residents in all communities, including the City's most vulnerable populations. The District will provide financial and regulatory assistance to advance Howard's health facilities and programming objectives. This is a significant step in realizing a bold vision to enhance its local, national, and global healthcare role in the District of Columbia through an unprecedented partnership with the City. 

"While DC continues to battle this pandemic, our team has remained committed to delivering hope and a better DC through a more equitable health care system," said Mayor Bowser. "With these new agreements, we will deliver high quality, integrated care and transform our health care system by promoting equity in care, access, and outcomes. Together, we will build a health care system that meets the needs of all residents, attacks health disparities, and makes us more resilient for the challenges that lie ahead." 

The announcement advances the University's Howard Forward strategic plan and the newly minted Campus Master Plan. Howard Forward outlines the University's future, highlighting the critical role of research that addresses local, national and global health challenges, collaboration between health sciences and STEM academic fields, and the need to serve the community. The Campus Master Plan effectuates this vision through better utilization of and strategic investment in the University's facilities and capital assets. 

"The role that Howard University Hospital plays in providing healthcare to the citizens of Washington, D.C., and especially to those most vulnerable, is a sacred one," said Howard University President Wayne A. I. Frederick, M.D., MBA. "This partnership with the City to support building a new facility will strengthen Howard University's healthcare system, which is important to preserve our mission to serve the community. Because of Howard's role as the primary pipeline of African American healthcare professionals, this investment in the hospital is also an investment in the future of the healthcare profession and its diversity."

With the support of the Board of Trustees, Howard's leadership recognizes the health and well-being of the University is inextricably tied to the physical, social, and economic well-being of the city in which it was founded. As such, the University's new campus master plan offers a far-reaching vision for the long-term transformation of the central campus and its integration with the surrounding neighborhoods. A bold blueprint, focused on enhancing the experience of students, faculty, staff, and alumni, the Campus Master Plan includes a state-of-the-art teaching Hospital and Medical Office Building and an integrated Health Sciences Complex and STEM Center to serve as a centerpiece and catalyst for interdisciplinary research and patient care.

Through a $225 million tax abatement provided by the District, Howard University and its new operating partner Adventist HealthCare, envision a new, $450 million, 225 bed, Level I trauma and academic teaching hospital, with plans for completion in 2025 or 2026.  The current Howard Hospital will remain open until the new hospital is completed.  In addition, the District is committing $25 million in public infrastructure support, and $26.6 million over the next six years to support five Centers of Excellence at Howard Hospital – Sickle Cell, Women's Health, Oral Health, Trauma and Violence Prevention and Substance Abuse.  Finally, in support of Howard's redevelopment plans, the District has committed to establishing one of its agencies as a tenant in one of the planned new office buildings.

"This partnership with the District is a great opportunity that will cover a broad landscape in some of the city's high risk neighborhoods," said Hugh E. Mighty, VP of clinical affairs. "Howard University Hospital will continue to provide healthcare east to the river through our clinics. The benefit of a new facility combined with our partnership with Adventist HealthCare will enhance our ability to provide a broad spectrum of care."

Realizing this vision is made possible with support from a network of partners, including Adventist HealthCare, the District of Columbia government, the Federal government, and private investors and developers.  The new, state-of-the-art facility is critical to continuing Howard's 150-year-old tradition of serving the community.

"Adventist HealthCare is excited about the future of Howard University Hospital and our involvement in helping to continue its long tradition of providing high-quality care," said Terry Forde, President & CEO of Adventist HealthCare, one of the longest-serving providers in the D.C. region. "Our history of nationally recognized care for heart, stroke, cancer, OB and other health services will complement and help support the future of Howard University Hospital. We are grateful for the support from Mayor Bowser and the city as we work together towards the development of a new state-of-the-art hospital."

Modern facilities will enable clinical research on conditions afflicting the District's most vulnerable populations and strengthen Howard's on-going efforts to reach underserved communities. It will complement Howard's existing health care community health care programs and facilities, such as the new ambulatory care center Howard's Medical Faculty Practice which recently opened on Benning Road in partnership with Unity Health Care.

"Partnership with the District enables Howard to advance plans for its new teaching hospital and academic complex, as well as unlocking exciting redevelopment opportunities that will support a lively, Georgia Avenue Corridor, while advancing the University's mission," said Howard University Real Estate Executive Anthony Freeman, who leads strategic development and capital asset management initiatives.

Howard's vision for community service extends beyond the District of Columbia to underserved communities across the country. HUH is the largest training institution for minority physicians in the nation, having graduated over 10,000 physicians in its history, and placing more than 50% of its graduates into African American and other minority communities. Investments in a modern, efficient hospital will elevate training for generations of African American medical professionals.

Media Contact: Alonda Thomas, [email protected] 

SOURCE Howard University

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