OHSU’s Net Worth Reaches $183 Million

October 12, 2011 – Oregon Health & Science University closed its fiscal year with an estimated net worth of $183 million – an 11 percent increase over fiscal year 2010, according to Lawrence Furnstahl, chief financial officer, who made a presentation to its board last week.

When their fiscal year ended on June 30, the school had $57 million in operating income, $28 million in total returns on investments and other non-operating items, $98 million in net gain within its foundations and related accounts.

Enrollment is also up over 2010, by 5.5 percent overall. The biggest bump in enrollment occurred in the School of Medicine, which saw a 9.3 percent increase in the total number of students, although the number who intend to become physicians decreased by 3.7 percent (from 488 MD candidates in FY 2010 to 470 in FY 2011).

PhD and master's degree students (such as those pursuing graduate studies in public health or biomedical informatics) accounted for the increase. Meanwhile, there was a 2.4 percent decrease in the number of students enrolled in the School of Dentistry.

“Once again as our attendance is up, our staffing is up and we're doing more than contributing toward the economy in Oregon, and that's something everyone needs to be proud of and pay attention to,” said Board Chair Charles Wilhoite.

The board met at the university's West Campus in Hillsboro, which is home to both the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute and the Oregon National Primate Research Center.

Meanwhile, the workload at the Oregon National Primate Research Center has increased, while it’s dealt with a decrease in funding from the National Institute of Health, according to Nancy Haigwood, director and senior scientist. The center has been doing studies on oncofertility, vaccinations and addiction treatment, and groundbreaking research toward an HIV vaccine.

“Our goal is to do translational research that can speed the advent of a new idea, a new substance, a new concept to the clinic,” she said. “That means we can show whether something works or whether it doesn't, and can shorten the amount of time spent in the clinic.”

She also said the pharmaceutical industry is conducting more animal research overseas, which can be ideal for certain types of research but not for gathering detailed studies.

“It’s important for everyone to understand the absolute essential nature of the research that’s done here,” said Dr. Joe Robertson, OHSU president. “We talked earlier a little bit about the rapid application of science to improve the human condition, to improve the health and well-being of our citizens. If you try and do that without an animal model, there could be dire consequences."