Doctors oppose medical center

Molly Ball

Wednesday, June 8, 2005 | 11:08 a.m.

A group of Las Vegas doctors say they will propose a competing plan to Mayor Oscar Goodman's push for a downtown academic medical center operated by an out-of-state university.

The doctors say their idea would put the center under the sole control of Nevada doctors and university officials, unlike a proposal from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center that has been championed by Goodman.

"We think there's plenty of excellent local talent here, and we don't think we need to talk about going out of state," said Dr. Ed Kingsley, a board member and past president of the Clark County Medical Society. "We think it's a mistake to bring in the University of Pittsburgh."

The local physicians are opposed to the offer from Pittsburgh, which has been negotiating with the city and state medical school officials to essentially own and operate a Las Vegas academic medical center.

Instead, the doctors would seek funds for an alternative plan under the sole control of the University of Nevada School of Medicine. The university said it backs the doctors but does not oppose the Pittsburgh proposal.

Kingsley said he would lead the charge to create a locally based alternative to the Pittsburgh plan. "We think we can do it," he said.

"We have the connections, and we're going to start working in the grass roots" to raise money, he said. "I'm realistic about it, I know it's going to take some years, but I'm optimistic."

The Medical Society's board passed a resolution at its meeting last month supporting Kingsley's position, he and others said.

The doctors and the mayor agree on the need for a medical center in Las Vegas, and that project is moving ahead. On Tuesday, legislators approved an additional $4 million in funds for a potential facility, on top of $1.5 million that had been approved earlier.

The money from the Legislature goes to the University of Nevada medical school to be used for the planning, design and construction of the proposed medical center.

Goodman said the doctors opposed to the Pittsburgh proposal should have talked to him.

"It's amazing that they haven't contacted me," he said. "Shame on them."

Goodman said he believed out-of-town help would be necessary to create a Las Vegas medical center.

"Right now I haven't heard of anyone in this community that's able to do a liver transplant or a heart transplant," he said. "I'm trying to talk to the best in the world, to talk to them about filling a void."

The Nevada medical school favors Kingsley's idea but is open to Goodman's, said Dr. Jim Lenhart, the Las Vegas-based vice dean of the medical school.

"I'd like it to be all Nevada -- by Nevada, for Nevada, with the Nevada Legislature and philanthropy giving us a lot of money," Lenhart said. "I've always maintained this with Oscar and he knows it. If we can find a way to do it all Nevada, that's what I want.

"We could do it, there's no question. But it would not be done as fast. Oscar wants it tomorrow -- actually, he wants it yesterday. The University of Pittsburgh could build it bigger faster. Twenty years later, would it be better? Probably not."

Lenhart said his priority is to get an academic medical center started in Las Vegas, period. If that requires working with an out-of-town partner, "we need it so desperately, I say, 'Let's do it.' "

He added that the counter-proposal suggested by Kingsley would have his attention if it got off the ground.

"If Ed Kingsley could create a groundswell for funding of this, I would be most impressed and would definitely be listening, as would (Medical School Dean) John McDonald, as would (Chancellor) Jim Rogers."

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center has proposed a partnership with the Nevada medical school in which Pittsburgh would operate the medical center and have a nominal 99-year lease for the state-built facility.

Pittsburgh would bear the financial risk of operating the center and, under the initial proposal, would share some profits with the state medical school. To many in the local medical community, the plan amounts to a sweetheart deal for a bunch of out-of-towners who will take away business and profit that could have stayed in Las Vegas.

"I think a lot of physicians here in the community feel that the community would better served by a University of Nevada medical center located in Las Vegas," Clark County Medical Society President Dr. Michael Colletti said. "Then it would be our state academic medical institution, not under the direction of an out-of-state institution."

The state medical school is primarily based in Reno, with some medical training taking place in Las Vegas. Colletti said the state has never devoted enough resources to medical facilities in Las Vegas, including the medical school here, and that is where the focus should be.

The proposed medical center is expected to cost $250 million, with some coming from private donations but hopes the state will provide most of the funding. Recently, Assemblyman Morse Arberry, D-Las Vegas, sought $25 million from the Legislature for the project, but lawmakers weren't ready to commit that much.

Goodman said he was happy with the $5.5 million the project ended up with and denied that he ever really sought $25 million.

"There was no lobbying, there were no formal proposals -- just a belief of some legislators that this is a wonderful dream that should be realized for all Nevadans," the mayor said. "I think what they got us is terrific."

Lenhart noted that the Pittsburgh proposal was far preferable to the previous pitch from the Cleveland Clinic to build a medical center on the downtown site. Cleveland's plan would have employed only Cleveland Clinic doctors; the center would have provided specialized medical care but no research or education, Lenhart said.

Pittsburgh, on the other hand, has been receptive to collaboration with the Nevada medical school and has promised to provide care for the poor, hire local doctors who are qualified, and embrace research and training, he said.

"Take the politics out of it, take the egos out of it," Lenhart said. "At the end of the day, the important thing is that we address Nevada's health and what's right for health care in Nevada. I'll listen to anybody who can make that happen."