University of Virginia School of Medicine

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University of Virginia School of Medicine
Established: 1819
Type: Public
Dean: Sharon L. Hostler (interim)
Location: Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Website: UVA School of Medicine

The University of Virginia School of Medicine is a medical school located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. The tenth medical school to open in the United States, it has been part of the University of Virginia since the University's establishment in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson. The school's facilities are on the University of Virginia Grounds adjacent to the historic Academical Village, and it shares a close association with the University of Virginia Health System.

The current interim dean of the School of Medicine is Sharon L. Hostler, a specialist in pediatrics.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

Medical education was one of the fields of study at the University of Virginia since its founding by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, forming a cornerstone of Jefferson's 1814 plan for a school of higher education and in his 1817 bill to the General Assembly which first proposed the idea of a central university at the head of an integrated system of public education across the commonwealth.[2] Jefferson's initial 1818 proposal for the faculty of the University was for a single professor of the theory of medicine and surgery as a science, since at that time Charlottesville was too small to support a general hospital; however, Jefferson planned from the beginning for anatomy to be a key portion of the University curriculum, dedicating a building, the Anatomical Theatre, for the teaching of the subject.[3]

The University opened for classes in 1825 with eight faculty and sixty-eight students, of whom 20 took classes in the School of Medicine.[4] Jefferson took great pains to recruit the most highly qualified faculty, five of whom were found in England and three in the United States. Robley Dunglison, who later became Thomas Jefferson's personal physician, was the University's first professor of anatomy and medicine, while John Patton Emmet lectured on biology, chemistry, and comparative anatomy.[5] The anatomical theater was finally approved by the Board of Visitors in 1825 and construction began in 1826 and finished in 1827, allowing medical instruction to take place as originally envisioned by Jefferson.[6]

Aerial view of the UVA Medical Center, home to the School of Medicine
Aerial view of the UVA Medical Center, home to the School of Medicine

Jefferson opposed the granting of degrees on the grounds that they were "artificial embellishments." In 1824, however, the Board of Visitors authorized granting the master of arts degree. The M.D. degree was awarded to the first graduates of the School of Medicine in 1829.[7] The bachelor's degree was awarded beginning in 1849, but became the standard undergraduate degree and a prerequisite for the master's degree in 1899, bringing the University into conformity with other institutions of higher learning. The Ph.D. has been awarded since 1883.[8]

Over the years the medical school faced several attempts to relocate it to Richmond on the grounds that it would benefit from close association with a hospital, the first such attempt occurring in 1834[9] and the last in 1920; the final attempt was deflected by University professor (and later president) John Lloyd Newcomb, who said, "Yes, we agree that the Medical School ought to be in Richmond where there are fine clinical facilities; and we also want the Engineering School at Pittsburgh, where there are more factories, and the Modern Language Department in Switzerland, the linguistic capital of the world."[10]

The medical school operated without benefit of access to a hospital until the beginning of the 20th century. Beginning in 1893 the Board of Visitors petitioned the General Assembly for funds to construct a hospital on University grounds, and plans were drafted beginning in 1899. The first (administration) building was opened in 1901 and the flanking pavilions were built in subsequent years.[11] The hospital continued to be expanded throughout the 20th century. (For more information about the hospital, see University of Virginia Health System.)

[edit] Reputation

In 2008, U.S. News and World Report ranked the UVA School of Medicine at No. 23 for research. The school was ranked #9 among public U.S. medical schools.[12]

[edit] Departments

Department Chair Type
Biochemistry & Molecular Genetics Joyce L. Hamlin, PhD Basic Science
Biomedical Engineering Thomas C. Skalak, PhD Basic Science
Cell Biology Barry M. Gumbiner, PhD Basic Science
Microbiology J. Thomas Parsons, PhD Basic Science
Molecular Physiology & Biological Physics Howard C. Kutchai, PhD (acting) Basic Science
Neuroscience Kevin S. Lee, PhD Basic Science
Pharmacology James C. Garrison, PhD Basic Science
Anesthesiology George F. Rich, MD, PhD Clinical
Dentistry Thomas E. Leinbach, DDS Clinical
Dermatology Kenneth E. Greer, MD Clinical
Emergency Medicine Robert E. O'Connor, MD, MPH Clinical
Family Medicine Sim S. Galazka, MD Clinical
Internal Medicine Robert M. Strieter, MD Clinical
Neurological Surgery Mark E. Shaffrey, MD Clinical
Neurology G. Frederick Wooten, Jr., MD Clinical
Obstetrics & Gynecology William N.P. Herbert, MD Clinical
Ophthalmology Brian P. Conway, MD Clinical
Orthopaedic Surgery Cato T. Laurencin, MD, PhD Clinical
Otolaryngology Paul A. Levine, MD Clinical
Pathology Dennis J. Templeton, MD, PhD Clinical
Pediatrics Robert L. Chevalier, MD Clinical
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation D. Casey Kerrigan, MD Clinical
Plastic & Maxillofacial Surgery Raymond F. Morgan, MD, DMD Clinical
Psychiatric Medicine Bankole Johnson, MD, PhD Clinical
Public Health Sciences Robert E. Reynolds, MD (acting) Clinical
Radiology Michael D. Dake, MD Clinical
Surgery Irving L. Kron, MD Clinical
Therapeutic Radiology & Oncology James M. Larner, MD Clinical
Urology William D. Steers, MD Clinical

[edit] Notable Faculty

The faculty of the School of Medicine are recognized nationally and internationally. The faculty includes 15 members of the Institute of Medicine and National Academy of Sciences; three members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; 12 members of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; five recipients of the Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award; four recipients of the Virginia Outstanding Scientist Award; and two recipients of the Virginia Life Achievement Award in Science.[13]

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ About the Dean. University of Virginia Health System. Retrieved on 2008-05-06.
  2. ^ Bruce, Philip Alexander (1921). History of the University of Virginia: The Lengthening Shadow of One Man I. New York: Macmillan, 73-78. 
  3. ^ Bruce, I:224.
  4. ^ Bruce, II:80.
  5. ^ Bruce, II:107.
  6. ^ Bruce, I:270.
  7. ^ Bruce, II:139.
  8. ^ Bruce, III:389-395.
  9. ^ Bruce, II:111-114.
  10. ^ Dabney, Virginius (1981). Mr. Jefferson's University: A History. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 69-72. ISBN 081390904X. 
  11. ^ Bruce, IV:293-297.
  12. ^ University of Virginia. US News 2007 Medical School Rankings. Retrieved on 2008-05-02.
  13. ^ Highlights of Faculty Achievements. Factbook, UVA School of Medicine. Retrieved on 2008-05-02.
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