Slowly but surely, stability has been returned to the University of Pennsylvania Health System, culminating this week in the appointment of a new executive vice president of the health system and dean of the School of Medicine.
A soft-spoken South African, Arthur Rubenstein will take over both jobs beginning September 1. Penn had been searching for a permanent executive vice president and dean since last July.
Rubenstein said he was extremely excited about getting the job. "I love universities, I love academic medicine, and when this job was available, to be honest, [Penn] may have tried hard to recruit me, but secretly I really wanted the job," he said.
"This is a special university, with an important health system and a great medical school. It's just an honor for me to come," Rubenstein added.
Rubenstein's career has been an illustrious one. For the past four years, he served as dean of Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. For 30 years prior, he was a faculty member at the University of Chicago and chairman of their Department of Medicine between 1981 and 1997.
He received his medical degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, and is a Fellow of the College of Medicine of South Africa and of the Royal College of Physicians in London, just to name a few.
"Arthur Rubenstein is an exceptional educator and an accomplished physician, scientist and leader who possesses the experience and skills necessary to lead Penn's Health System into the future," University President Judith Rodin said in a statement.
In his capacity as executive vice president, Rubenstein will answer to Rodin, and as dean, to University Provost Robert Barchi. The Health System's CEO Robert Martin will report to Rubenstein.
"Robert is the administrative head of the Health System, and I actually believe he's done an outstanding job. The finances look much better now, the organization is stable. I think he really must get a lot of credit for having led that turnaround," Rubenstein said. "I'm hoping that we'll compliment each other in a way that will be of real value here."
Rubenstein will be meeting with Martin and Interim Dean of the School of Medicine Arthur Asbury over the next month to ensure a smooth transition. "I just have a lot of things to learn very fast," Rubenstein said.
Rubenstein comes to the Health System at a time when it is starting to recover from a battle with financial difficulties that led University officials to consider selling the Health System, -- and idea ultimately thwarted.
"Dr. Rodin has put us back together again. I'm really, really pleased about that because it allows the clinical mission of the institution to be aligned in a way that's just very special" Rubenstein said.
But he realizes that there are still many challenges facing academic health systems like Penn's. "I think we need to be creative and be sure that the Health System and Medical School's clinical operations don't negatively impact the university. These things are so big now and they are so driven by marketplace issues that you want to shield academia, academic university issues, from it as much as is reasonable," he said.
In the end, though, Rubenstein's love of for academic medicine is rooted in his love for students and teaching.
"I wouldn't have come [to Penn] if I couldn't teach. I love to teach. It's in my bones and blood and that's why I love universities," he said. Rubenstein's specialty lies in diabetes research and treatment.
