The £15m Knowledge Spa will be built in the grounds of the Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske in Truro.

Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust chief executive Brian Milstead said the centre could set an example to the rest of the UK.

He said: "We are trying to create a centre of excellence for educational training which will see staff learning and working together."

"This is potentially a unique way of doing things that others across the country will be looking at for the future."

Construction work is set to begin in February, with the first medical students due to arrive in September 2004.