September 27, 2002

The following questions were addressed by Samuel O. Thier, MD, president and CEO of Partners, and James J. Mongan, MD, president of the MGH, at the Partners Town Meeting Sept. 23.

Q: Dr. Thier, what will you be doing after you step down as president and CEO of Partners?

Thier: I will be relocating my office to the MGH main campus, so that I can spend more time rounding with the medical teams, working with the MGH Renal Unit staff and collaborating with David Blumenthal, MD, on projects for the Institute of Health Policy. I'm also a member of quite a few boards, which will keep me busy.

Q: We all know that there is a huge shortage of space at the MGH campus. What are the plans for easing the space crunch for those programs that will not be moving into the new Yawkey Center for Outpatient Care?

Mongan: Space is always an issue for a growing institution. We currently are working on two major construction projects – the Yawkey Center and a research building in Charles River Plaza. For those programs that are not moving to the Yawkey Center, there are plans to move some of those programs into the backfill areas. Solving these space issues is a constant process, and we need to continue evaluating the most meaningful use of the space we have.