As the debate over health care reform rages, the Miller School's crop of freshman medical students were assured that any such reforms would take place during the years they are preparing to become doctors and even after graduation.

The health policy discussion was part of a welcome event for the Class of 2013 hosted by Pascal J. Goldschmidt, M.D., senior vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Miller School and CEO of UHealth, the University of Miami Health System, and University President Donna E. Shalala. Goldschmidt drew on his long background in academic medicine as he assured the students that the Miller School is the place where they will see health care reform in action and encounter patients early in their education, including some of South Florida's neediest residents.

Medical students, Dean Goldschmidt said, should learn immediately that patients, regardless of their ability to pay, should always come first: "If it's the right thing for the patient, it's the right thing to do," he urged. "Please remember that."

President Shalala, former Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Clinton Administration and one of the nation's most renowned health policy experts, assured the students that even with uncertainty about health care reform, they were in for a wonderful ride studying medicine at Florida's oldest medical school and in one of the most vibrant and international cities in the country.

"You are some of the luckiest people on the face of the earth," Shalala said. "You have an opportunity to study at one of the great schools of medicine in the country and very few people on earth have this kind of opportunity."

On reform, she said the students should not be close-minded about change but be ready to embrace new developments that promise better wellness and health care, including care for the less fortunate.

"If you're open to new ideas and new approaches, and if you're committed to a society in which we offer high-quality health care to every single person, no matter what their means, then this is a perfect opportunity to be part of a great medical school, because you are going to be watching the debate and participating in the changes that are going to transpire," Shalala said. "It is going to change as you are going through medical school and we will try to be nimble enough to make sure you are well-prepared. The best way to prepare you is to prepare you as continual learners. That's what great research universities do."

The 198 freshmen, including 48 participating via video conferencing from the Miller School of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University, listened to the dean and president on August 12, the penultimate day of five days of orientation that included talks from various members of the University leadership, faculty, and the divisions of financial aid, student affairs, computer services, along with senior students and leaders of various student organizations.

"They were very encouraging but they were also thought-provoking and candid about the state of medicine today," said Elisha McKay, a freshman medical student who also received her undergraduate degree from UM. "This is a time of rapid change but all of us here today chose the right institution to prepare us for whatever is to come."

A day earlier, the freshman medical students attended a student organization fair where they learned of the multitude of Miller School student interest and service groups. Dozens of students sought information and signed up for organizations such as Caneshare, the Islamic Society of University of Miami, and the Student National Medical Association, as well as student interest groups for ophthalmology, surgical specialties, and other areas.

Freshman Sean Murphy, also a graduate of UM, said the several days of sessions displayed all the medical school had to offer and reminded students why they decided to enroll at the Miller School.

"Overall, the dean told us we are entering medical school at a unique time in the United States and this medical school is one of the great places where we can begin to make a difference," said Murphy. "As future doctors we'll hold a lot of power but we'll have to respect it and use it wisely. I want to do my part to make the world a better place and I strongly believe I can do that in medicine."