WARRENSVILLE HEIGHTS, Ohio --A new medical school, an extension of Ohio University's Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, will open at Cleveland Clinic's South Pointe Hospital.

The Clinic and OU, which announced the affiliation today, will invest a combined $49 million to address the growing shortage of primary care doctors in Ohio.

The agreement builds on a longstanding relationship between the Clinic and the Athens-based medical school, which have partnered to train physicians for 35 years. South Pointe Hospital is one of the largest osteopathic teaching hospitals in the state and OU students have done third- and fourth-year clinical rotations there for decades.

The first class of 32 medical students is scheduled to begin July 2015, assuming approvals by the American Osteopathic Association Council on Osteopathic College Accreditation and the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association.

An osteopathic physician and a medical doctor both attend four years of medical school. They complete their training during the same residency programs and pass the same licensing exams.

The difference is in the teaching style and focus during medical school. Osteopathic schools instruct students to look at the whole patient, not just symptoms, which is now being embraced by medical schools. Osteopathic students also are educated in osteopathic manipulative treatment, which is manual diagnosis and treatment. Not all osteopathic physicians use that in their practice.

OU will spend $36 million, which includes renovating a building on the South Pointe Hospital campus and hiring faculty and staff. The Clinic's contribution of $13 million includes the building renovations as well as medical education support. The Brentwood Foundation, a nonprofit, private foundation that advances osteopathic medicine, is providing a $5 million grant to South Pointe Hospital and $6 million to graduate medical education.

"Cleveland Clinic and the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine share a dedication to excellence in patient care, research and medical education," said Dr. Toby M. Cosgrove, Cleveland Clinic President and CEO in a news release. "This collaboration will help improve quality for patients, stimulate medical innovation and improve the economic health of our communities."

The affiliation shows how public and private collaborations can create jobs and improve the quality of life for Ohioans, OU President Roderick McDavis, said in a release.

"Our medical students will be offered expanded education opportunities with world-renowned experts at the Cleveland Clinic," he said. "With our partners, with this additional site, we are a university of promise for our students and for the citizens of our great state."

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Ohio University to open medical school at Cleveland Clinic's South Pointe Hospital