Faced with a petition demanding his ouster and a new report citing decreasing moral, Pascal Goldschmidt, dean of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, gave an impassioned defense of his administration late Wednesday but said he understood faculty anger and vowed to change direction.
Speaking to a packed, rancorous faculty senate meeting of serveral hundred at the medical school, Goldschmidt listened to angry objections and said he was dealing with them. Shortly afterward, he issued a formal letter saying that, after hearing “the concerns of faculty and staff,” he decided a “change in course and team was warranted.”
Meanwhile, the senate heard a new report that the faculty petition “demonstrates the seriousness of the loss of confidence in the senior leadership of the medical school.”
Perhaps the most dramatic moment during the meeting, according to several anonymous sources, came when Bernie Fogel, a former medical school dean, rose to tell Goldschmidt that the faculty had lost confidence in the leadership.
On Thursday, when contacted by the Herald. Fogel, who has spent virtually his entire career at UM, confirmed his statements at the meeting. “It was heartbreaking for me to point out that there is a lack of trust and confidence in the leadership of this school.”
Goldschmidt’s formal letter to faculty said he had to make hard decisions because of the school’s tough economic situation. That resulted in laying off almost 1000 full-time and part-time employees, as part of executing “a major turnaround.”
“Today, our financial results are much improved. Seven months into the fiscal year, we are $8 million in the black, $9 million ahead of plan, $36 million favorable to the prior year, and well on our way to surpassing our commitment to deliver $27 million to help rebuild UM’s balance sheet,” Goldschmidt wrote. “This is after reserving funds for all bonuses and clinical incentives that we have pledged to our hard-working faculty and staff.”
Goldschmidt said faculty and staff will be getting a 3 percent merit increase starting June 1.
“We had no time needed to make tough decisions. The process was painful for leaders, faculty and staff alike. It was especially difficult for me personally. ....
“At the end of December, when we realized that our performance had indeed improved and stabilized, it was time to refocus. I listened to the concerns of faculty and staff via their Chairs, the Medical Faculty Council representatives and their petition, and through direct, one-on-one conversations. This made me decide that a change in course and team was warranted.
“I demonstrated my commitment to the staff and faculty of the Miller School by taking immediate action, bringing onto my team longtime UM leaders familiar with our culture and values. It is important to me that we remain an institution with common goals and shared successes with the members of our School and the entire UM family.”
Goldschmidt said he intended to “invite faculty volunteers to key advisory committees, whose mission will be to express the needs and concerns of the faculty directly to me, and to implement our shared vision during this transition time.”
The senate’s ad hoc committee on the medical school, in a report dated Jan. 14, said, “The committee acknowledges and appreciates the significant recent steps taken by the university to address” faculty complaints. “However, we are aware of deep and worsening skepticism among many medical school faculty and staff concerning whether leaders of the medical school share these values. The fear of retribution persists.”
Goldschmidt told the gathering that he has never punished anyone who has spoken out against him or his actions.
Goldschmidt confronts angry UM medical school faculty
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Goldschmidt confronts angry UM medical school faculty
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Goldschmidt confronts angry UM medical school faculty
