Annual Pub 2022 - Flipbook - Page 10
Business and Medical Skills Combined:
A Prescription for Success
by Paul Harasim
When 昀椀rst year medical student Daniel Aynlender talked with Marc J. Kahn, MD, dean of the Kirk Kerkorian School
of Medicine, about the wisdom of a physician having a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, he was
unaware that the day before their 2021 conversation the UNLV administration announced the approval of a joint
MD/MBA dual degree program that would get underway this fall.
“Just a lucky coincidence,” said Aynlender, now a second year student who says he may decide to hold a leadership
position in healthcare, perhaps in hospital administration, where an MBA would be helpful.
What isn’t a coincidence is the burgeoning interest by medical students across the country in pursuing an MBA.
While the University of Pennsylvania was the 昀椀rst to establish an MD/MBA program in 1971, today about half of
the nation’s 143 allopathic schools offer the dual degree.
DR. ARON ROGERS AND MEDICAL STUDENT DANIEL AYNLENDER AT THE 2022 WHITE COAT CEREMONY | PHOTO: JOSH HAWKINS
At UNLV, participants in the dual program will do the MBA training after their third-year medical rotations. That third
year of patient care involves work experiences that can be brought to the business program, allowing a student to
better see how a business background can be helpful to them.
Aynlender said he won’t decide whether to get a dual degree until his third year of medical school. Right now he’s
looking at the pros and cons. Aynlender coupled a science major with a minor in accounting as an undergraduate
at UCLA.
Adding another year to medical school adds more cost, he pointed out. But scholarships could help with that, and
what an MBA adds to a career could make it pay for itself, Aynlender said. He also said what could hold him back
from pursuing a dual degree is the desire to graduate from medical school with his class.
“I’m trying to convince some of my peers to join the dual program with me so we can graduate together,” he said.
“It would be nice to be the 昀椀rst UNLV graduates of the dual degree MD/MBA program.”
With the U.S. spending nearly 18 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on healthcare, Dr. Kahn argues that
“basic business skills are important to young physicians.” He suggests physicians need to better understand how
to manage people, make or interpret 昀椀nancial models, manage strategically, and understand the role of health care
venture capital.
Aynlender is particularly interested in whether it’s best to get a joint MD/MBA degree or to obtain an MBA after
practicing as a physician. Dr. Kahn received his MBA well after he graduated from medical school.
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KIRK KERKORIAN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT UNLV
SUMMER 2022
