Tufts Medical Center

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Tufts Medical Center (until recently Tufts-New England Medical Center) is a medical institution in Boston, Massachusetts occupying space between Chinatown and the Theater District.

It is a center for biomedical research and is the principal teaching hospital for Tufts University School of Medicine where all full-time Tufts physicians hold faculty appointments. Tufts Medical Center is subdivided into a full-service adult hospital and the Floating Hospital for Children, a full-service pediatric facility. In 1992, with the addition of a maternity service, it became the first private, full-service medical facility in Boston.^{[1] [2]}

Contents 1 History 2 Research 3 Innovations 4 Numbers 5 Emergency medicine 6 Transportation 7 External links 8 References

[edit] History

Tufts Medical Center's origins date back to 1796 when the Boston Dispensary was established as the first permanent medical facility in New England, and one of the first in the United States. Early donors included Paul Revere.^[3]

In 1894, the Boston Floating Hospital was established by a Congregational minister, the Rev. Rufus Tobey. At the time, many believed in the cleansing and theraputic qualities of sea air to improve health, and Tobey had heard of a hospital ship for children in New York. For the next 33 years, two successive ships were home to the hospital for children in Boston Harbor. In 1931, after the second Floating Hospital for Children ship was destroyed in a fire, the hospital was relocated to a permanent building onshore.^[4]

New England Medical Center was established in 1930 as a union of the Boston Dispensary, the Boston Floating Hospital for Children, and the Trustees of Tufts College. The Pratt Diagnostic Clinic was added in 1946, and in 1950 when Tufts University School of Medicine and Tufts University School of Dental Medicine relocated to Chinatown the name was expanded to New England Medical Center Hospital.^[5]

In 1968 it was renamed Tufts-New England Medical Center (Tufts-NEMC) to reflect the growing relationship between the hospital and the university. In 1970, the NEMC board met with the Tufts Trustees to outline a cooperative agreement which remained in effect until the late 1970's when tensions between the organizations resulted in "Tufts" being dropped from the name.^[6]

After a tense period of competition between the organizations during the 1980's, the NEMC board reached an agreement with the Tufts Trustees in 1991 and the name was changed back to Tufts-New England Medical Center. The affiliation agreement they adopted still stands.^[7]

The name was shortened to Tufts Medical Center on March 4, 2008. A press release regarding the rebranding said:

The relationship between the hospital and the university is uniquely close given that both institutions operate independently and will continue to do so. Tufts University School of Medicine’s campus is located steps from the Medical Center in downtown Boston, as is the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences and the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Seventeen of the 18 Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM) physician faculty chairs reside at Tufts Medical Center. Tufts University President Lawrence S. Bacow and TUSM Dean Michael Rosenblatt, MD actively serve on the Medical Center’s board, and Zane holds a seat on the Medical School’s Board of Overseers.^[8]

Tufts Medical center President and CEO Ellen Zane said the "added benefit of our new name is that it is shorter and easier to say and remember."^[9]

[edit] Research

Tufts has a history of achievement in scientific research and clinical advances. Tufts research led to the discovery of drugs that prevent the body’s rejection of transplanted organs, coining the term "immunosuppression," and also brought to light the link between obesity and heart disease. Tufts ranks among the top 5 percent of the nation’s institutions that receive federal research funds.^[1]

[edit] Innovations

Tufts Medical Center and its predecessor institutions are responsible for numerous medical innovations, including:

• In 1899, the Boston Dispensary established the first U.S. lung clinic.
• Around 1919, Dr. Alfred Bosworth invented the first effective synthetic milk product for infants, known and sold today as Similac.
• In 1927, Dr. William Hinton perfected the diagnostic test for syphilis, which is still used today.
• In 1952, the first preparation of human growth hormone was developed.
• In 1958, the suppression of the body's immune system to avoid the rejection of transplanted tissue was demonstrated and the term "Immunosuppression" was coined.
• In 1963, the Family Participation Unit was established, allowing parents to stay in the hospital overnight with their children.
• In 1981, the world's first pediatric trauma center was established.
• In 1997, the Neely House was established as a first-of-its-kind bed and breakfast-style home within the walls of the hospital. The facility hosts the families of adult and pediatric cancer patients.^[10]
• In 2001, the first-in-the-nation transplant exchange program, "Hope Through Sharing" was established.^[11]

[edit] Numbers

Tufts Medical Center has a total of 451 licensed beds: 210 medical/surgical beds, 46 adult intensive care beds, 66 pediatric beds (including 12 pediatric psychiatric beds), 62 pediatric and neonatal intensive care beds, 23 post-partum beds, 20 adult psychiatric beds, and 24 infant bassinets.^[1]

[edit] Emergency medicine

The Emergency Department (ED) is equipped for the evaluation, resuscitation and stabilization of patients of all ages who present with acute illness or injury. The Floating Hospital for Children is the home of the Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute and is a Level 1 Pediatric Trauma Center. Tufts Medical Center is part of the consortium of hospitals which operates Boston MedFlight.^[12]

[edit] Transportation

Easy access to the MBTA Orange Line and a Silver Line is available at New England Medical Center MBTA Station beneith the overpass connecting the main atrium with Floating Hospital for Children. Chinatown station, also on the Orange line, is one block away.

Also within a short walking distance is South Station, a major transportation hub serving the MBTA Commuter Rail, MBTA Red Line, Greyhound Lines and Amtrak.

Additionally, several services of "Chinatown bus" operate out of this neighborhood and provide a means of inexpensive travel between Boston and New York City.

[edit] External links

• Tufts Medical Center
• Floating Hospital for Children
• Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute

[edit] References