As I celebrate my two-year anniversary at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, I can say without a doubt that Buckeyes are passionate, collaborative and laser focused. I see tremendous growth and innovation happening here. With our bold new curriculum for interprofessional education, ground-breaking novel discoveries partnered with record research funding, high-quality patient-centered care and our talented team of more than 2,800 faculty, nearly 5,000 learners and over 4,000 staff members, we are transforming the health of our communities. It’s been a great year, so I am excited to share these highlights with you.
Education
With the goal of preparing more physicians to practice medicine in rural or smaller communities, this summer we announced a new Community Medicine MD Track in partnership with Bon Secours Mercy Health to train 15 additional medical students each year. I am also proud to share that U.S. News & World Report ranked us 30th for Best Medical School – Research, 32nd for Best Medical School – Primary Care (the best in Ohio) and 14th for Most Diverse Medical School in the country. And our medical students enjoyed a 97% match rate this year.
Research
Last fiscal year, we had a record $221.9 million in NIH funding and our total research funding increased by 22% with more than $367 million. Biomedical innovations and breakthrough discoveries occurred in key areas like cancer, neuroscience, heart, immunology and informatics. One of our skilled scientists, Maria Mihaylova, PhD, was selected as a Pew Biomedical Scholar for her goal of advancing knowledge of metabolism and diet’s effect on aging intestinal cells.
Clinical Care
We are leaders in clinical care. Ohio State holds one of the largest first-in-human clinical trial portfolios in gene therapy and is one of the only institutions with most of its gene therapy trials delivering targeted gene therapy to the midbrain. We also have two renowned surgeons who pioneered a minimally invasive surgical technique to remove skull-base tumors, which are some of the rarest and most dangerous head and neck tumors. Patients come from all over the world to seek treatment by Ohio State’s brilliant physicians. Be sure to read about our Gene Therapy Institute and skull-base surgery in this report!
Capital Improvements
The Ohio State University has one of the most comprehensive health sciences campuses in the nation, and we continue to grow with more than $3 billion planned for capital investments. In coming years, we will have a new interdisciplinary health sciences center, an 820-plus bed inpatient tower, new outpatient care centers and an interdisciplinary research building.
People Make the Difference
While new facilities are important, the strength of the Ohio State College of Medicine remains its people. Our new Chief Health Equity Officer, Chyke Doubeni, MBBS, MPH, is leading efforts to reduce health disparities among our patients and communities, and every day our learners, faculty and staff fulfill each facet of our mission to transform the health of our communities. In fact, our teams’ community transformation efforts are so powerful and palpable that the Association of American Medical Colleges presented us with its prestigious Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Engagement this year. This honor truly exemplifies our incredible work, and I could not be more proud.
Sincerely,
Carol R. Bradford, MD, MS, FACS (external link)
Dean, The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Vice President for Health Sciences
Leslie H. and Abigail S. Wexner Dean’s Chair