Washington University School of Medicine

Infobox_University

---

name = Washington University School of Medicine
established = 1891
type = Private
dean = Larry J. Shapiro, MD
city = St. Louis
state = Missouri
country = USA
postgrad = 1,012
588 MD
155 MD-PhD
435 PhD
faculty = 1,585
campus = Urban
website = [http://medschool.wustl.edu/ medschool.wustl.edu]
endowment =

Washington University School of Medicine, located in St. Louis, Missouri, is one of the most competitive and highly regarded medical schools and biomedical research institutes in the United States. It is consistently ranked as one of the top three medical schools in research according to "US News and World Report", and rated as the number one most selective medical program in the country based on average GPA and MCAT score. Successful applicants in 2007 boasted an average 3.88 undergraduate GPA with a 37.5 MCAT score. Located on the eastern edge of Forest Park, it is affiliated with Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis Children's Hospital, the St. Louis Veteran's Administration Hospital, and several other community sites.

Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine has 1,012 students, of which 588 are pursuing a Medical Degree with or without a combined Doctor of Philosophy. It also offers Ph.D. degrees in biomedical research through Division of Biology and Biological Sciences. The School also boasts large physical therapy (229 students) and occupational therapy (124 students) programs. There are 1,585 faculty, 555 residents, and 480 fellows.18 Nobel laureates have been associated with the school.

History

Medical classes were first held at Washington University in 1891 after the St. Louis Medical College decided to affiliate with the University, establishing a Medical Department. Robert S. Brookings, a University benefactor from its earliest days, devoted much of his work and philanthropy to Washington University, and made the improvement of the Medical Department one of his primary objectives. This especially became a cause for concern after an early 1900s Carnegie Foundation report derided the organization and quality of the Medical Department. [cite web | title=Medical Campus Tour | url=http://www.wustl.edu/tour/medicine/ | work= [http://wustl.edu/tour Historical Campus Tour: School of Medicine] ]

Following a trend in medical education across the country, research and the creation of new knowledge became a stated objective in a 1906 course catalog for the medical department. For Brookings and the University, incorporating the Medical Department into a separate School of Medicine seemed to be the next logical step. This process began in 1914 when facilities were permanently moved to their current location in St. Louis's Central West End neighborhood in 1914, and was completed in 1918 with the official naming of the School of Medicine.cite web | url = http://beckerexhibits.wustl.edu/wusm-hist/about.htm| title = Origins and History of the Washington University School of Medicine | first = Paul | last = Anderson | coauthors = Marion Hunt | publisher = Washington University Medical School, Bernard Becker Medical Library | accessdate = 2008-07-22 ]

The Medical School began its escalation from regional reknown in the 1940s, a decade when two Nobel Prizes were awarded, in 1944 and 1947, to groups of faculty members. In 1950, a Cancer Research Building was completed, being the first major new building addition to the School of Medicine since its relocation in 1914. More buildings were added in that decade, and in the 1960s the School of Medicine focused on diversifying its student body by graduating its first African-American and substantially increasing the percentage of graduating students who are female to nearly 50%.cite web | url = http://beckerexhibits.wustl.edu/wusm-hist/about.htm| title = Origins and History of the Washington University School of Medicine | first = Paul | last = Anderson | coauthors = Marion Hunt | publisher = Washington University Medical School, Bernard Becker Medical Library | accessdate = 2008-07-22 ]

Campus

Washington University Medical Center comprises 155 acres (0.5 km²) spread over approximately 15 city blocks, located along the eastern edge of Forest Park within the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis. Barnes-Jewish Hospital and St. Louis Children's Hospital, part of BJC HealthCare, the teaching hospitals affiliated with the School of Medicine, are also located within the medical complex. Many of the buildings are connected via a series of sky bridges and corridors. As of 2008, the School of Medicine occupies over 4.5 million square feet in the entire medical complex. [cite web | title=Facilities | url=http://medschool.wustl.edu/pages/?page=overview#facilities | work= [http://medschool.wustl.edu School of Medicine] ]

Washington University and BJC HealthCare have taken on many joint venture projects since their original collaboration in the 1910s. The Center for Advanced Medicine, completed in December 2001, is one such collaboration, which houses the Siteman Cancer Center. At 650,000 square feet, it is one of the largest single buildings in the Medical Complex. [cite web | url=http://neuro.wustl.edu/education/adultresidency/medicalcenter.htm | title=Washington University Medical Center | work= [http://admissions.wustl.edu Washington University School of Medicine: Department of Neurology] ] .

In the expansive Medical Complex are several especially large buildings. The Medical Complex's Queeny Tower is the 9th tallest hospital building in the world. [cite web | url = http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/sk/st/tp/ty/hs/ | title = World's Tallest Hospital Buildings | publisher = Emporis | accessdate = 2008-07-22] Currently under construction is the 700,000 square-foot BJC Institutes of Health, of which Washington University's Medical School will occupy several floors. It will be the largest building cosntructed on Washington University's campus. Called the BJC Institute of Health at Washington University, it will house the University's BioMed 21 Research Initiative, five interdiscplinary research centers, laboratories, and additional space for the Genome Sequencing Center. [cite news | title=Immense new facility to house BioMed 21 research at Washington University Medical Center | last=Ericson | first=Gwen | url=http://mednews.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/10418.html | work= [http://mednews.wustl.edu Medical Public Affairs] | date=October 30, 2007] .

Prominent buildings, centers, and spaces at the medical campus includes Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the Central Institute for the Deaf, St. Louis Children's Hospital, Rehabilitation Institute of Saint Louis, Siteman Cancer Center, Center for Advanced Medicine, Charles F. Knight Emergency and Trauma Center, and the Eric P. Newman Education Center.

The Medical Complex is accessible via the Central West End MetroLink station, which provides transportation to the rest of Washington University's campuses.

Nobel Laurates

Physiology or Medicine

*1943: Edward A. Doisy (1893-1986), Faculty of Medicine, 1919-1923
*1944: Joseph Erlanger (1874-1965), Chairman, Department of Physiology 1910-1946
*1944: Herbert Gasser (1888-1963), Faculty of Medicine, 1916-1931
*1947: Carl F. Cori (1896-1984), Faculty of Medicine 1931-1984
*1947: Gerty T. Cori (1896-1957), Faculty of Medicine 1931-1957
*1959: Arthur Kornberg, Chairman, Department of Microbiology, 1952-1959
*1959: Severo Ochoa, Faculty of Medicine 1940-1942
*1969: Alfred Hershey (1908-1997), Faculty of Medicine 1934-1950
*1971: Earl Sutherland (1915-1974), M.D. 42, Resident in Internal Medicine 1943-1945, Faculty of Medicine, 1945-1953
*1974: Christian de Duve, Faculty of Medicine 1946-1947
*1978: Daniel Nathans (1928-1999), M.D. 54
*1978: Hamilton O. Smith, Washington University Medical Service 1956-1957
*1980: George D. Snell, Faculty of Arts and Sciences 1933-1934
*1986: Stanley Cohen, Faculty of Arts and Sciences 1953-1959
*1986: Rita Levi-Montalcini, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, 1948-
*1992: Edwin G. Krebs, M.D. 43, Resident in Internal Medicine and then a Research Fellow in Biological Chemistry 1945-1948
*1998: Robert F. Furchgott, Ph.D. Faculty of Medicine, 1949-1956

Chemistry

*1970: Luis F. Leloir, Faculty of Medicine 1944
*1980: Paul Berg, Faculty of Medicine 1954-1959

Other associated hospitals

* St. Louis Children's Hospital
* Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital
* Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital
* Christian Hospital
* Northwest HealthCare
* Metropolitan St. Louis Psychiatric Center
* Missouri Baptist Medical Center
* St. Louis Shriner's Hospital

References

External links

[http://medschool.wustl.edu/ Washington University School of Medicine]
[http://dbbs.wustl.edu Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences]