KANSAS CITY, KAN. ? Barbara Atkinson doesn’t want a state-of-the-art research building with no one in it to perform research.

So Atkinson, executive dean of the Kansas University School of Medicine, is starting to recruit now to fill up the school’s new life sciences research facility – even though it isn’t scheduled for completion until 2006 and the school has had its budget cut by $2.6 million – or 6 percent – this year.

“Financial planning in these difficult times is going to be hard,” Atkinson said. “It’s a good investment to make.”

Faculty recruiting is one of the priorities set by Atkinson, who started her job Aug. 1 after serving two years as chairwoman of the department of pathology and laboratory medicine.

Atkinson replaced Deborah Powell, who left to become dean of the University of Minnesota School of Medicine.

Atkinson says she hopes to hire an additional 70 faculty members for research in the next five to seven years. The new $65 million building at the Med Center campus, funded by bonds approved by this year’s Kansas Legislature, will house current and new researchers.

Atkinson said a major focus of the KU First campaign by the Kansas University Endowment Association at the Medical Center would be raising money for faculty development. Many of the researchers will be funded by grants once they come to KU.

The life sciences building and the Hoglund Brain Imaging Center, which is nearing completion, have administrators excited about expanding research endeavors.

“The brain imaging center opens a brand new capability in research to work in a new area,” said Donald Hagen, executive vice chancellor for the Medical Center. “A lot of research can be tied to brain function. It’s an exciting time, because excellence recruits more excellence.”

Cancer center

Research also is driving Atkinson’s goal of gaining National Cancer Institute certification for the Kansas Cancer Institute.

Barbara Atkinson, executive dean of the Kansas University School of Medicine, discusses diagnosing diseases based on cell structure during a class last week. Atkinson said she remained optimistic about the school's future, despite budget cuts.

The designation, now given to only 39 centers in the country, allows KU to participate in more clinical trials and makes it eligible for additional federal funding.

Atkinson noted that Gunda Georg, professor of medicinal chemistry, has developed experimental cancer drugs that must be tested at other cancer centers that have NCI certification.

“It says we can do the newest and most modern cancer treatments,” Atkinson said of the designation. “We want to offer the most up-to-date treatment for patients.”

KU now is searching for a director for the institute and plans to ask for NCI designation next year.

Reorganization

Atkinson didn’t waste much time in making changes to the structure and personnel at the School of Medicine.

She created a new position in her office ” senior associate dean for operations and administration ” and hired Shelley Gebar, a former CEO at a surgery center in Philadelphia.

She also has filled vacancies in several department chairman positions and decided to make emergency medicine a department of its own. It formerly was a part of the surgery department.

Atkinson also has helped start a new clinical skills program, where medical students are taped while interviewing mock patients about their “conditions.”

“We’re trying to stress clinical skills,” she said. “It’s too easy in this day and age to just order tests and treatments.”

Despite the budget cuts, Atkinson said she was looking forward to her time at the helm of the medical school.

“It’s really exciting,” she said. “This is a top-notch place.”