Dean Strauss
Sometimes our pace is so busy and the next project so pressing that we don’t take time to reflect on what we’ve accomplished.
That’s one reason the School of Medicine’s Annual Report is helpful. It makes me stop and remember:
• The M.D. program continues to see record numbers of applicants.
• The Liaison Committee on Medical Education granted us a full eight-year accreditation.
• The Class of 2016 achieved one of the most successful matches in the medical school’s history.
• We are one of only 10 institutions chosen by the AAMC to pilot curriculum and assessment of the core entrustable professional activities.
• The Departments of Social and Behavioral Health and Healthcare Policy and Research merged to form the new Department of Health Behavior and Policy. An outstanding new Chair, Vanessa Sheppard, Ph.D., has been recruited and will begin tenure on September 1, 2016.
• Our aggressive renovation and capital construction program resulted in the completion of the first phase of a four-phase Sanger Hall renovation as well as renovation projects in West Hospital for key faculty recruits.
• A state of the art PET/CT System acquired by the Center for Molecular Imaging will be the first installation of this system in the U.S.
• The School of Medicine’s research funding grew to $131.5 million in total award dollars.
• Faculty submitted 51 invention disclosures and 25 patent applications along with executing two licensing agreements.
In the Annual Report you’ll find both data and narrative. It even has some forecasts, for example: It is predicted that a bedside ultrasound probe will be to the physical examination of the future what the stethoscope is now.
I invite you to review the 2015-16 Annual Report and take time to consider the past year’s accomplishments.
Jerome F. Strauss, III, M.D., Ph.D.
Dean, VCU School of Medicine
Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs, VCU Health System