Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Ranks in Top 10 in NIH Funding

CLEVELAND — Several departments within the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine placed in the top 10 for funding from the National Institutes of Health. The NIH, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the nation's largest provider of medical research support. This significant federal government funding to the School of Medicine reflects Northeast Ohio's leading medical research and treatment. The top ranking departments within each discipline include:

-- First: nutrition ($2.77 million)

-- Third: pediatrics ($26.4 million)

-- Fourth: dermatology ($4 million)

-- Fourth: orthopaedics ($3.2 million)

-- Fifth: public health and preventive medicine ($10.3 million)

-- Ninth: family medicine ($1.58 million)

Combined, the six departments brought in more than $48.4 million in fiscal year 2007, according to NIH. Equally notable was the department of internal medicine/medicine which brought in nearly $45.5 million and encompasses 11 medical specialty divisions, including: cardiovascular, hematology and oncology, endocrinology, pharmacology, geriatrics and gastroenterology.

"These impressive NIH rankings are a reflection of the high caliber of research taking place at the School of Medicine and our hospital affiliates," said Pamela B. Davis, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs, Case Western Reserve University. "I am proud of the great accomplishments of our faculty and look forward to continued leadership in these and other areas."

Funds were awarded to faculty of the School of Medicine with clinical affiliations at University Hospitals, MetroHealth Medical Center, Cleveland Clinic and the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Robert Miller, associate dean for research at the School of Medicine, says that while NIH funding has been flat over the last five years, the agency's support is critical. "NIH support has allowed our researchers to make significant progress against a range of diseases," Miller said. "Academia is the incubator of scientific and clinical research, which translates into improved clinical practice. Support of researchers is imperative to the development of new knowledge in the health sciences."

The School of Medicine, ranked as a top 25 medical schools according to U.S. News & World Report, continues to attract and retain top-tier national and international researchers to Cleveland. Medical research is a vital part of the region's health sciences economy and leadership, particularly in the areas of job creation and technology transfer.

About Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

Founded in 1843, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine is the largest medical research institution in Ohio and 12th largest among the nation's medical schools for research funding from the National Institutes of Health. Eleven Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the school.

The School of Medicine is recognized throughout the international medical community for outstanding achievements in teaching and in 2002, became the third medical school in history to receive a pre-eminent review from the national body responsible for accrediting the nation's academic medical institutions. The School's innovative and pioneering Western Reserve2 curriculum interweaves four themes--research and scholarship, clinical mastery, leadership, and civic professionalism--to prepare students for the practice of evidence-based medicine in the rapidly changing health care environment of the 21st century.

Annually, the School of Medicine trains more than 600 M.D. and M.D./Ph.D. students and ranks in the top 25 among U.S. research-oriented medical schools as designated by U.S. News and World Report Guide to Graduate Education. The School of Medicine's primary clinical affiliate is University Hospitals and is additionally affiliated with MetroHealth Medical Center, the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, with which it established the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University in 2002. http://casemed.case.edu