A groundbreaking partnership between Morehouse School of Medicine and CHI Memorial Hospital is set to transform healthcare education and equity in Chattanooga, with plans to establish a regional medical campus that could significantly increase the number of Black and minority healthcare professionals serving the community.
The collaboration, operating under the “More in Common Alliance,” represents a 10-year, $100 million initiative between the Atlanta-based historically Black medical school and CommonSpirit Health, CHI Memorial’s parent company. The partnership addresses a critical gap in healthcare representation: while Black and African American individuals comprise nearly 14% of the U.S. population, only 5.7% of active physicians identify as Black or African American, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Dr. Veronica Mallett, Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of the More in Common Alliance, emphasized the broader vision.
“We are exploring the possibility of doing not just undergraduate medical education, or medical school and PA (Physician Assistants) school, but residency training,” she explained. “And that residency training really does help to cement this impact, because we know that a very high percentage–over 80%–of residents stay where they train.”
The economic impact extends beyond healthcare. Each resident trained through the program contributes an estimated $250,000 to the city’s economy, and many graduating physicians are expected to remain in Chattanooga to serve the local community.
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly praised the collaboration as a significant step forward for the city.
“This initiative will bring medical students to our city for clinical rotations, strengthening our healthcare system and directly tackling the racial and economic disparities in public health outcomes we see,” he said. “This bridges the ‘two Chattanoogas’ I often speak of.”
CHI Memorial Market President Janelle Reilly highlighted the hospital’s historical commitment to equitable care, noting that the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, who founded Memorial Hospital in 1952, took early steps to end segregation at the facility.
“The partnership between CHI Memorial and Morehouse School of Medicine is a major step to help solve provider shortages through the recruitment and training of healthcare professionals that mirrors their community,” Reilly said.
The alliance also recognizes the importance of cultural competency in healthcare delivery. Dr. Mallett pointed out that fewer than 7% of the nation’s physicians are African American and fewer than 6% are Latino, despite these groups representing nearly one-third of the nation’s population.
“This population has the opportunity to be cared for by someone who shares their lived experience,” she explained. “Someone who can relate to the challenges that they might face and who simply listens in a different way.”
The joint venture includes plans to collaborate with other hospital systems in the Chattanooga area to ensure students can complete all required rotations locally. Additionally, Morehouse School of Medicine has established connections with institutions like Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy to create pathways for more underrepresented students to pursue medical careers.
State Representative Yusuf Hakeem praised the initiative’s focus on cultivating physicians committed to comprehensive care.
“Today we celebrate a renewed commitment to community health engagement and fostering future generations of compassionate physicians,” he said.
Morehouse School of Medicine was founded in 1975 as the Medical Education Program at Morehouse College. In 1981, it became an independently chartered institution and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award masters and doctorate degrees.