Financing medical illustration in the academic environment

Government policy is now exposing hospitals and universities to so-called free-market forces, where success or failure will hold the key to their future. If medical illustration departments are to continue to provide a viable service under the proposed plans then a radical restructuring of their position within each organization will have to be considered. The answer could lie in going beyond the existing cost recovery methods and opting out completely from the clutches of government funding, i.e. setting up departments as private companies.