NSU’s Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine Receives Provisional Accreditation

NSU is proud to announce that The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) has granted provisional accreditation to the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine (NSUMD). The LCME is the nationally recognized accrediting authority for medical education programs leading to the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree in the United States and Canada, and this accreditation provides assurance that programs awarding the M.D. degree meet the national standards for educational quality.

“We are excited about the news on our progress, and I want to acknowledge the hard work that Dean Vieweg, his faculty and staff have undertaken to achieve such a major step toward full accreditation in such a short period in the middle of a pandemic,” said NSU President Dr. George Hanbury. “Work will now begin to prepare for the final step in the accreditation process.”

All medical schools must complete three steps to become fully accredited by the LCME, and NSUMD has achieved the first two of these steps.

“Achieving provisional accreditation is a critically important milestone in our development and growth,” said Dr. Johannes Vieweg, founding dean of NSUMD. “Our early successes are a testament to the strength, talent, and dedication of our faculty, staff, students, clinical and community partners who, together, have been instrumental in laying the foundation of our new medical school.”

In 2015, the NSU Board of Trustees authorized the creation of the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine. The college received preliminary accreditation in October 2017 and admitted its inaugural class of 50 students in August 2018. The college will welcome its fourth class of 50 students in August 2021 and has received nearly 7,100 applications thus far for the college’s “Class of 2025”.

The college enjoys a strong clinical affiliation with the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) East Florida Division. Seven leading HCA hospitals in South Florida are currently serving as clerkship sites and provide hands-on clinical experiences for the college’s medical students. During clinical training, students have the opportunity to work side-by-side with physicians in the diagnosis and treatment of patients, applying knowledge learned from the first two years of study to real-life situations. Medical students are also exposed to advanced medical cases in cardiology, surgery, infectious diseases, pulmonary diseases, renal disorders and a host of other clinically-relevant scenarios using computer controlled high-fidelity mannequins in medical simulation centers.

Work will now begin to prepare for the final step in the accreditation process. The LCME is expected to conduct another site visit during the 2022/23 academic year, and a decision on full accreditation is expected in 2023.