“Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.”
– Rollo Reece May, American psychologist and author
I am proud and humbled to serve as dean of one of the very best medical schools in the nation. The Ohio State University College of Medicine is on the forefront of education, discovery and patient care. It is also, without a doubt, a very large institution. With more than 5,000 learners, 4,339 staff members and over 2,700 faculty, our College of Medicine community is even bigger than some small towns! Our size is one of our greatest strengths, providing an unparalleled wealth of opportunities and support.
One key factor at the heart of our continued success is our ability to communicate broadly across all of our many hospitals, outpatient clinics, classrooms, offices and research spaces.
At its core, communication is the bridge that connects us as individuals to one another. It is essential to establishing bonds and creating a sense of belonging. Think about the last time you shared a heartfelt conversation with a loved one or collaborated with your colleagues. Those moments of connection were powered by communication.
One of my favorite things about serving as your dean is that I get to engage and connect with each and every member of our community — and I like to do that as often as possible. You may have noticed this, given my attendance at campus events, my social media presence and my weekly e-newsletters. I love communicating with all of you.
My team and I partner to share news and information with our faculty, staff and learners through many different tools, from the College of Medicine topic on HealthBeat HUB to my new LinkedIn profile to good old-fashioned email. I really enjoy writing this monthly blog, in particular, to share my thoughts and connect with you directly. I hope the fact that you are reading this right now means you like it, too.
On a broader scale, communication is the driving force behind human progress. Throughout history, our ability to convey knowledge and ideas has led to breakthrough innovations and solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues. It is not an exaggeration to say that I hear or read about the discovery of such solutions within our college on a daily basis. This month alone, we have already heard about members of our faculty who were the first in the nation to administer a targeted gene therapy for patients with a specific form of ALS, and about other faculty members who were first in the world to participate in a trial of a device designed to alleviate heart failure symptoms.
You are all doing extraordinary work — and communicating about it beautifully.
Many of us have become strong communicators as we pursue success in the classroom and in our careers: crafting important papers, presenting compelling research findings and thoughtfully choosing our words as we talk with patients. In different ways, we all use communication to support our tripartite mission. I encourage you to keep this up! Share your good news prolifically. You never know what groundbreaking collaboration might be waiting — just around the corner — if only you share what you are working on now.
Our very own Marketing and Communications team was recently recognized for their innovative work leveraging a variety of communications tactics to increase applications to our medical school. Nicole Thomas, our marketing manager, created the clever “MD: My Dream, My Decision” campaign, which helped increase our applications in a year when total applications were down nationwide. We received the prestigious 2023 Group on Institutional Advancement Bronze Award for Excellence from the Association of American Medical Colleges for this impactful campaign — and more than 7,200 applications to boot!
Communication truly matters.
Each year, there is so much wonderful news in our college that I dedicate an hourlong presentation to sharing as many highlights as possible. Please join me Wednesday, Oct. 11, at 4:30 p.m. for the State of the College of Medicine address. I look forward to connecting with you as a community and communicating about the many fantastic contributions you have all made this year.
Dean, College of Medicine
Leslie H. and Abigail S. Wexner Dean’s Chair in Medicine
Vice President for Health Sciences, Wexner Medical Center