Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine

What it reported doing in 2024

Academic program: geisinger commonwealth school of medicine (gcsom) offers three separate degree programs: a doctor of medicine (md) program, master of biomedical science (mbs) program and an associates degree in nursing (adn). Gcsom focuses biomedical research and training programs on health issues prevalent in northeastern and north central Pennsylvania, a 17-county region with 1.8 million residents. The region has an aging population, 19.5 percent of residents are older than age 65, compared to 15.1 percent nationally. Moreover, the region has high incidences of breast, lung, colorectal and prostate cancers, as well as high incidences of non-hodgkin's lymphoma, other chronic disease associated with aging, and significant needs in primary care, mental/behavioral health, and community medicine. The school of medicine's total health curriculum (thc), is a four-year, three-phase curriculum that matriculates 115 medical students per class. The first phase is a novel active learning-based, integrated curriculum that uses the clinical presentation model, within organ system-based blocks. In this phase, students also gain early clinical experience in the longitudinal clinical experience where students work in local primary care clinics. During the second phase of the curriculum, students are assigned to one of gcsom's regional campuses, where they will train in acute care hospitals and ambulatory practice sites. The five gcsom regional campuses are the northeast (scranton/wilkes-barre), central (danville), west (lewistown/state college) guthrie (sayre), and atlanticare (atlantic city, nj). The third phase of the curriculum provides students with opportunities to explore different career pathways and complete required and elective coursework aligned with their postgraduate specialty of choice. The thc also includes the systems, society, and humanism in medicine curriculum (sshm) composed of six longitudinal themes that are integrated throughout the curriculum and transform our socially responsible students into socially accountable leaders in the healthcare system and their communities. Sshm fosters the development of compassionate and adaptable physicians dedicated to a person-centered approach to improving the health and well-being of the patients and communities they serve. Sshm incorporates a family centered and community experience (fcce). The fcce matches students with families living with chronic illnesses, disabilities or whose lived experience impacts their health. This allows our community members to be our students' educators, and for students to listen and learn from people with lived experiences that have impacted their health or the health of the community. Students also participate in a required longitudinal community health/ service-learning program, to investigate and/or solve a community health issue, to make an immediate improvement in the community and to enhance the health of the region's citizens. In addition to required coursework, md candidates also participate in community service activities with community agencies. The students organize blood drives and health fairs, tutor local children, collect food and warm clothing for the homeless and complete many other helpful acts that immerse them in and improve the well-being of the community. In total, gcsom students have volunteered more than 50,000 hours to the community since the school's inception. Since 2020, the abigail geisinger scholars programs (ags) has provided tuition and fee support and a cost-of-living stipend for up to 45 incoming students annually in exchange for a service commitment within the geisinger health system after residency. The goal of this program is to reduce student debt and importantly, repopulate regional physician shortages in key specialty areas including family medicine, internal medicine, medical pediatrics, and psychology. In the 2024 md match, 115 students were placed into residency programs, 52 students are entering primary

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 91.1%; rating input score 91
• Program expense ratio: 88%; rating input score 88
• Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Compensation committee: Pass
  • Independent consultant: Pass
  • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
  • Written employment contract: Pass
  • Compensation survey or study: Pass
  • Board or committee approval: Pass
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Scored; rating input score 0

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 71.4%; rating input score 71; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Pass
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

• Operating margin: 5.2%; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.78; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.34; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 23.1%; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 7.2% per year; rating input score 100; 59th percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 0.6% per year; rating input score 100; 7th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 5.5% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings