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Partners since 1948, OHSU and Portland VA collaborate in many areas of education, patient care and research. During the 1960s the affiliation grew more significant, as medical student clerks
and residents undertook about half of their clinical training there under School of Medicine-appointed VA hospital staff. Federal funding supported residents and specialty fellows,
including a shared internship in internal medicine established in 1966. For many years, former OHSU School of Medicine Dean John Kendall dreamed of a bridge spanning the 150-foot-deep ravine
that separated the two institutions. Kendall and former VA Portland Director Joe Ferry believed that the link would enhance efficiency and collaboration. Ferry authored the first request to
Washington, D.C. for the building of such a bridge. In 1992, the two hospitals at last became physically joined with the completion of the 660-foot pedestrian sky bridge, a tangible symbol
of the long-term partnership between Portland VA Medical Center and the medical school. Federal funding secured by Senator Mark Hatfield assured the completion of the bridge. The dedication
ceremony for the sky bridge was held on November 2, 1992. Speakers included OHSU President Peter Kohler, VA Portland Director Barry L. Bell, Senator Mark Hatfield, and School of Medicine
Dean John Kendall. (Sources; Subject file: Skybridge OHSU-VAMC. Historical Collections & Archives, OHSU Library. Subject file: Veterans Affairs/Veterans Administration. Historical
Collections & Archives, OHSU Library.) ------------------------- In Oct., 2014, to better reflect the system-wide spectrum of care, "PVAMC" changed its name from "Portland
VA Medical Center" to VA Portland Health Care System (VAPORHCS). Not long before 9-11, VA Portland basically had two sites of care – Portland and Vancouver. Today we host 12 care
facilities from Astoria to Newport to Bend and other sites in between directly serving more than 26 counties across the Pacific Northwest.
