Lessons from the death of a behemoth

✍ Scribed by Richard S. Wilbur

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1986
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 118 KB
• Volume: 6
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0894-1912
• DOI: 10.1002/chp.4760060115

✦ Synopsis

Elliott Richardson, the distinguished 0 Chairman of the Board of Governors of EcuMed, introduced this massive experiment in Continuing Medical Education (CME) over a three continent teleconference as: 'An idea whose time has finally come." On April 25,1985, it was announced that work on EcuMed had been suspended. What happened during this relatively brief interlude?

The project, as conceived, was to be in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on property large enough for 4,000 physicians to participate in various learning activities at one time. It was to consist of a large CME center, a 1,500 bed hotel, a three million square foot exhibit hall, a library, museum, recreation facilities and all of the amenities required to support such a huge enterprise. The planning included the newest innovations in electronic and other teaching technologies. It was to provide individuals, and the many small to midsize meetings that usually are held in hotels and motels, with a single Pentagon-sized center with everything necessary to present the newest and finest in medical learning.

Usually when a new project is shelved, there has been a failure to secure enough capital, or there has been weak management. In this instance, neither was the case. The principals in the Board of Directors, Robert Tishman, Jerry Speyer, and Peter Liebowitz, certainly had access to sufficient capital. The operation was planned for 800 million dollars; hardly a classic example of underfunding! The Board had also hired Sam Davis, an experienced and capable hospital administrator, as President and CEO. He combined knowledge of the health care field with management expertise and was further supported by a top level team, including such experts as Margaret Glos.

Nor was there any failure to seek good advice. The Directors recruited an advisory Board of Governors consisting not only of Secretary Richardson, but also the leaders of the major organizations involved in medical education and other experts in the health care field. A blue ribbon committee of Continuing Medical 0 1986 by The Regents of the University of California