LOS ANGELES (CNS) - UCLA Health Sciences announced today a $20 million philanthropic commitment that it said would enable it to enhance its ability to provide simulation training to future healthcare professionals. The expansion and revitalization of the learning resource center, which includes the UCLA Simulation Center, will also create a new home for the Center for Advanced Surgical and Interventional Technology and provide a new state-of-the-art space for training medical students in the most advanced patient care practices, according to a statement.
The project is a priority of UCLA's health enterprise because of its importance in attracting and preparing future leaders in health care. Eugene & Maxine Rosenfeld Hall, which is named after the couple who made the $20 million commitment, will be one of the few facilities in the nation to unite mock clinical experiences, surgical and procedural simulation, and interprofessional emergency and hospital team training in one building, it said.
``For more than 50 years, the Rosenfelds have been dedicated supporters of the university,'' said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block.
``Their generous gift will advance medical education at UCLA so that those trained here can improve patient care in Los Angeles and far beyond.''
The training at Rosenfeld Hall will engage students in simulated medical scenarios using the latest technologies; enable them to apply scientific principles of health and disease through work with ``virtual patients,'' ranging from computer simulations to virtual reality to high-tech mannequins; and facilitate collaboration among students, residents, faculty, thought leaders and the community, according to the statement.
Rosenfeld Hall is just across the street from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center -- which includes UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital and the Stewart and Lynda Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at UCLA -- making it an ideal location for the physicians, residents, nurses and clinical researchers who will train there, it said.
``The philanthropic partnership with the Rosenfelds will revolutionize UCLA's facilities to maximize knowledge, giving the David Geffen School of Medicine a competitive advantage and leading to greater health care efficiencies and more personalized patient care,'' said Dr. Kelsey Martin, the school's dean.The Rosenfelds' philanthropy has made a significant mark on education and on UCLA.
Their previous gifts established the Rosenfeld Library at the UCLA Anderson School of Management and the Maxine and Eugene Rosenfeld Chair in Medical Education. Their gifts to UCLA College include more than 270 scholarships for students with disabilities and those in need of financial assistance. They have also given to the Chancellor's Greatest Needs fund, UCLA Alumni Affairs, UCLA Athletics, UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture and UCLA Health Sciences.
The son of Russian immigrants, Eugene Rosenfeld received a scholarship to attend UCLA and was the first in his family to graduate from college. A leading real estate investor, he is the sole proprietor of Forest Lane Management, LLC, a major investor and developer of commercial and residential real estate in the U.S. and Europe.
The new commitment is part of the $4.2 billion UCLA Centennial Campaign, which is scheduled to conclude in December 2019 during UCLA's 100th anniversary year, according to UCLA Health Sciences.