A next-generation collaboration for community health and well-being
K-State, Stormont Vail Health celebrate two years of partnership to connect researchers, physicians and patients.
Stormont Vail Health President and CEO Mark Slyter, left, and K-State President Richard Linton tour the C. Clyde Jones Family Research Center at the Stormont Vail Health Manhattan campus. | Download this photo.
It's been two years into a research collaboration between Kansas State University and Stormont Vail Health, and the two organizations are already seeing results, from education to health-related research.
K-State physician assistant studies students are doing clinical rotations with Stormont Vail Health, and several recent graduates are now employed at Stormont Vail Health locations. Similarly, Stormont Vail Health is offering career exploration opportunities for K-State students interested in a variety of health professions. More than 43 undergraduates and 13 graduate students have gone through applied learning experiences with Stormont Vail Health.
On the research side, more than 65 K-State faculty and student researchers have been involved in cross-institutional projects that cover topics such as physical activity and exercise, early predictors of mild cognitive impairment, and brain stimulation and neuroplasticity.
But these successes are just the beginning. Leaders say the partnership between K-State and Stormont Vail Health is advancing health care breakthroughs in the Flint Hills region and beyond.
Mary Martell, Stormont Vail Health vice president for strategy and regional development, center, asks a question during a tour of Mary and Carl Ice Hall, which houses the K-State physician assistant studies program and is next door to the Stormont Vail Health Manhattan campus. Also pictured are Amy Fitzgerald, physician assistant studies program director, left, and Mark Slyter, Stormont Vail Health President and CEO. | Download this photo.
"As Kansas State University advances as the next-generation land-grant university, we recognize that community health and well-being represent significant opportunities to serve the people of Kansas," said K-State President Richard Linton. "Our partnership with Stormont Vail Health builds on our land-grant mission by integrating education, health care and research. Together, we can do good in Kansas and the world."
The two organizations recently celebrated two years of the research partnership and five years of their shared academic affiliation with an event organized by the Office of External Engagement's Corporate Engagement team. Leaders from both organizations attended the event — including K-State President Richard Linton and Stormont Vail Health President and CEO Mark Slyter — to highlight how the partnership is building next-generation research and education for both organizations.
"The partnership for Stormont Vail with Kansas State University is so important because of all the levels of connectivity and focus both of these organizations have and the impact that they have on the local communities," Slyter said. "Our focus is on community health and making sure we have that level of connectivity there and finding solutions for our communities. K-State shares that same direction, which makes it a great partnership."
Advancing health care innovation
The Stormont Vail Health Manhattan campus opened in 2023, and the research collaboration between K-State and Stormont Vail Health was formalized that same year. The Kansas State University and Stormont Vail Health research collaboration supports next-generation health care research, education, access and innovation by building collaboration among K-State faculty and students and Stormont Vail Health providers and patients.
"There is such a need in this country and worldwide for additional health care providers and health care experts," said Mary Martell, Stormont Vail Health vice president for strategy and regional development. "Kansas State University, through the physician assistant studies program, has provided us with a new workforce. We have graduates working throughout our health system in Topeka, Manhattan and Junction City. That really is what academic partnership is about: increasing access for people in Kansas to health care providers."
The K-State physician assistant studies program is based in Mary and Carl Ice Hall, which is next door to the Stormont Vail Health Manhattan campus.
Other research facilities involved in the collaboration include the C. Clyde Jones Family Research Center at the Stormont Vail Health Manhattan campus and the K-State Lafene Clinical Research Lab.
Amy Fitzgerald, physician assistant studies program director, right, shows Mark Slyter, Stormont Vail Health President and CEO, an Anatomage Table, which is a 3D anatomy visualization and virtual dissection tool. | Download this photo.
K-State's College of Arts and Sciences, College of Health and Human Sciences, Carl R. Ice College of Engineering and College of Veterinary Medicine have proposed or ongoing projects with Stormont Vail Health. Some of these projects involve microvascular function in chemotherapy patients, brain health, motor function in stroke patients, medical devices and so much more.
"This partnership gives us the opportunity to have conversations about the real needs in our community so that we can target our research to have an impact," said Carl Ade, K-State associate professor of kinesiology, director of the clinical research coordination center and liaison between K-State and Stormont Vail Health. "It also allows our students to get involved in clinically meaningful research or clinically meaningful opportunities and experiences to interact with industry partners."
"This partnership is really just beginning," Ade said. "It's going to be really exciting to see how it develops."
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News tip: Junction City, Manhattan and Topeka.
Website: k-state.edu/corporate-engagement
At a glance: Two years into a research collaboration between Kansas State University and Stormont Vail Health, the two organizations are already seeing results, from education to health-related research.
Notable quote: "Our partnership with Stormont Vail Health builds on our land-grant mission by integrating education, health care and research. Together, we can do good in Kansas and the world."— K-State President Richard Linton.
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