August 24, 2000

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Protective Life Corporation will provide the School of Medicine at UAB $1 million over the next five years to heighten collaboration among clinical programs with an eye toward enhancing patient care and encouraging the most efficient use of medical staff and resources.

The Protective Life Clinical Initiative Awards will enable physicians to increasingly break down traditional academic boundaries to develop novel approaches to solving clinical needs. These efforts will provide people who come into the UAB Health System for medical treatment with the highest quality, most efficient care possible.

“Clinical excellence is one of the primary goals of this school, and this gift will help us ensure that excellence,” said William B. Deal, M.D., dean of the School of Medicine. “The Protective Life Clinical Initiatives Awards will lead to better integrated clinical care, which will benefit all Alabama citizens who depend on UAB to meet their health-care needs.”

UAB’s faculty has a national reputation for interdisciplinary collaboration to create innovative research and clinical programs. This has resulted in the University being ranked 18th among all universities and colleges in funding from the National Institutes of Health, with the School of Medicine ranked 16th among its counterparts.

“This is a gift that we’re delighted to make to the medical school at UAB,” says Gillian Goodrich, charitable contributions coordinator for Protective Life. “Boosting the interdisciplinary aspects of the research and teaching components already established at UAB will continue to enhance the university’s distinction as a regional health care leader; we believe UAB can become a national model for interdisciplinary approaches to the clinical practice of medicine.”