U of M Announces Director for New Interprofessional Center

Gwen Wagstrom Halaas to Head Center for Interprofessional Education

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (March 21, 2007) -- The University of Minnesota has announced Gwen Wagstrom Halaas, M.D., as the director for the Academic Health Center’s new Center for Interprofessional Education.  Halaas is currently an assistant professor in the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Department of Family Medicine and Community Health and director of the Rural Physician Associate Program (RPAP).

“Dr. Halaas has significant, broad, and deep experience as a family physician, as a health care system administrator, and innovative educator,” says the Academic Health Center’s assistant vice president for education Barbara Brandt, Ph.D.  “She will bring with her the knowledge and experience that is necessary for the success of this program.”

Halaas graduated from Harvard Medical School and has worked in medical education since 1986, serving as assistant director and program director of two family medicine residency programs.  Since 2004, she has served as the associate director for the Minnesota Area Health Education Center (AHEC).  Prior to her work with AHEC, she was associate medical director for HealthPartners, where she supervised the centers for excellence and helped to develop the Institute for Medical Education.  

The Center for Interprofessional Education is intended to provide the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center with the structure and facilitation necessary for interprofessional education across the health professional schools.    The center will help students understand and work with other health professionals in a context that will be beneficial for health care delivery.

The Academic Health Center is home to the University of Minnesota’s six health professional schools and colleges as well as several health-related centers and institutes. Founded in 1851, the University is one of the oldest and largest land grant institutions in the country. The AHC prepares the new health professionals who improve the health of communities, discover and deliver new treatments and cures, and strengthen the health economy.

Contact: Sara Buss, Academic  Health Center, 612-624-2449
Amy Devore, Academic Health Center, 612-626-4784