"Maybe out of this tragedy something good will happen: a living memorial to Regina."
    Thomas G. McGinn, M.D., Chairman, Department of Medicine

Regina Marie McGinn had been a doctor at Staten Island University Hospital for almost fifteen years before she succumbed to cancer in August of 2001. Her academic credentials, professional accomplishments and unfailing commitment to quality patient care had long established Regina as one of the most respected physicians on Staten Island. Those fortunate enough to know her well also understood that Regina's love of medicine was second only to her love for her husband Joe and their four children, Jacqueline, Joanna, Joseph and John. In Joe's words, "She was an unbelievable mother and an unbelievable physician."

Regina McGinn was a devoted physician. Regina McGinn was also a devoted educator. As Associate Director of Medicine, these dual roles established Regina as one of the faculty's most vocal spokespersons for the prioritization of medical education. For years Regina espoused the position that as a teaching hospital, SIUH had the unique obligation to provide the resources necessary to educate future generations of physicians.

As far back as 1997, the Board of Trustees and administrative staff had accepted its responsibility to find and provide the financial and facility resources that would advance the education of its 400 medical students, 200 residents, and 1,000 staff and affiliated doctors. That year Regina and other faculty and administrative staff members began to plan for the construction of a 20,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art education center. After extensive planning at all levels of hospital staff, architectural plans began to take shape for a multi-purpose education center that would benefit not only the hospital's medical staff and students but also the dozens of neighborhood organi- zations and support groups that sorely needed space to meet and serve their constituencies. By all accounts, it was particularly important to Regina that the new education center be the entire community's focal point for education in the broadest sense possible

And unquestionably, there was unanimous agree- ment regarding the desperate need for additional teaching space. SIUH's Chairman of the Department of Medicine characterized the critical lack of training, meeting and educational space as "this hospital's single biggest deficit".

This is no mere personal observation as SIUH is an 800- bed teaching hospital charged with providing hundreds of medical students and residents every year with the obligatory clinical and classroom training. In addition, for SIUH's doctors to maintain their licenses, they are obligated to "remain current" by continually learning new skills and techniques. So with over 250 full- time doctors on the medical staff (at three sites), an additional 1,000 doctors credentialed and 4,000 other employees, faced with a very apparent, even desperate, shortage of space, by the late 1990's, the leadership of the hospital prioritized the construction of a combination training / meeting center and library on its North site.

While the staffs of all three SIUH sites will certainly utilize the new facility, the new $7,000,000 building was primarily designed to address the compelling space limitations at the North site.

The new Education Center will be a magnificent two story, freestanding building on Seaview Avenue adjacent to the hospital's main entrance. It was care fully designed over a period of months with the input and participation of hospital employees at all levels. In terms of function and efficiency, the leadership of the hospital is confident that this additional 20,000 square feet of space has been designed to correct the many frustrating deficiencies described under "The Need".

The Center's exterior design will be harmonious with the existing hospital, but with a dramatic roof overhang and two story glass entrance and lobby. A skylit atrium will visually connect the expansive entrance area with a large second floor balcony (which will also serve as a break area during conferences). Small garden and outdoor function areas will be located on the sides of the Center.

The first floor will consist primarily of a 300 seat, sloped floor auditorium and five flexible-space meet- ing rooms, each designed to comfortably accommodate 20 to 35 people. These facilities will be outfitted with the latest audio-visual technology for receipt and transmission of voice and video images. With its electronic, campus-wide links, this system will be capable of transmitting medical procedures being performed in the hospital's operating and radiology suites as well as linking the South site and other local and national hospitals and medical education sites.

The second floor will house the hospital's burgeoning medical library. With almost double the current space, medical students will have access to over 500 periodicals and professional publications, 1,000 texts, dozens of audio tapes, and fourteen computer terminals with CD-ROM and accommodations for emerging technology. The skylit reading room will feature six study carrels, several small work tables and reading tables and a quiet group study room. Office and check- out space will also be expanded.

The second floor left wing of the Center will be the new Board Room with the capacity to seat approximately fifty people. (The Board Room will also be available as another large meeting room.)

Finally, with the relocation of the library, Board Room and other meeting spaces to the new Education Center, those spaces will be renovated into yet additional meeting rooms and administrative offices.

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