Georgetown University Medical Center
Encyclopedia
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
. It is also a $225 million biomedical research and educational organization. The Medical Center contains over 80% of Georgetown University's sponsored research funding and is led by Howard J. Federoff, MD, PhD, the Chief Executive Officer and the Executive Vice President for Health Sciences and Executive Dean of the School of Medicine
It is co-located with Georgetown University Hospital
Georgetown University Hospital
Georgetown University Hospital is one of the national capital area's oldest academic teaching hospitals and is affiliated with Georgetown University School of Medicine. GUH is a not-for-profit, acute-care teaching and research facility located in Northwest Washington, DC...
on the university's main campus in Washington, DC. GUMC encompasses four sectors of medical education and research: Georgetown University School of Medicine
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Georgetown University School of Medicine, a medical school opened in 1851, is one of Georgetown University's five graduate schools. It is located on Reservoir Road in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC, adjacent to the University's main campus...
, the School of Nursing and Health Studies
School of Nursing and Health Studies
Georgetown University School of Nursing & Health Studies is one of the four undergraduate schools of Georgetown University. Founded in 1903 as the School of Nursing, it added three other health related majors in 1999 and appended its name to become the School of Nursing & Health Studies...
, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the Biomedical Graduate Research Organization.
School of Medicine
Founded in 1851, the School of Medicine (“SoM”) is committed to educating medical students in the spirit of the Jesuit ideal of cura personalisCura personalis
"Cura Personalis" is a Latin phrase that translates as "Care for the Entire Person". “Cura Personalis” suggests individualized attention to the needs of the other, distinct respect for his or her unique circumstances and concerns, and an appropriate appreciation for his or her particular gifts and...
, or "care of the whole person." Ranked among the top 50 medical schools in the country, in 2008 the SoM was ranked 40th by U.S. World and News Report. The SoM is led by Dean for Medical Education, Stephen Ray Mitchell, MD.
School of Nursing and Health Studies
The School of Nursing and Health Studies is one of the four undergraduate schools at Georgetown UniversityGeorgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
, and consists of four academic departments: Health Systems Administration, Human Science, International Health, and Nursing. The School of Nursing and Health Studies also has 233 students in its nine graduate programs, including the Nurse Anesthesia program, ranked sixth in the nation. Bette Jacobs, PhD, RN, is the Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Studies.
Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center
Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center is the only comprehensive cancer center accredited by the National Cancer InstituteNational Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
(NCI) in the Washington, DC region, and one of only 41 nationwide. Named for Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
and Washington Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
coach Vince Lombardi
Vince Lombardi
Vincent Thomas "Vince" Lombardi was an American football coach. He is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to three straight league championships and five in seven years, including winning the first two Super Bowls following the 1966 and...
, who was treated at Georgetown, Lombardi was established in 1970 as the cancer clinic at Georgetown University Hospital. Today, Lombardi has over 200 faculty and receives $100 million in research funding each year.
The director of the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center is Dr. Louis M. Weiner, MD, and notable faculty include Dr. Richard Schlegel, one of the innovators behind the HPV vaccine
HPV vaccine
The human papilloma virus vaccine prevents infection with certain species of human papillomavirus associated with the development of cervical cancer, genital warts, and some less common cancers...
.
Biomedical Graduate Research Organization
The Biomedical Graduate Research Organization (BGRO) is responsible for more than 60% of the sponsored research conducted at GUMC. The mission of the BGRO includes both basic science departments and clinical departments, as well as graduate education in the biomedical sciences. The BGRO is led by interim director Robert Clarke, PhD, DSc.The Biomedical Graduate Education division is a subset of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The degrees offered range from traditional PhDs and MS programs to MS specializations in such areas as Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Complementary/Alternative Medicine, and Certificate programs in Biotechnology, Biodefence & Public Policy, or Biohazardous Threat Agents. The Biohazardous Threat Agents graduate certificate is currently the only fully recognized graduate program at Georgetown that is available online. In 2008, the graduate programs enrolled 160 PhD students,189 students in Masters programs, and 159 students in the Special Masters Program in Physiology and Biophysics.
Biomedical Graduate Programs
PhD, MS, Cert.- BiochemistryBiochemistryBiochemistry, sometimes called biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes in living organisms, including, but not limited to, living matter. Biochemistry governs all living organisms and living processes...
& Molecular BiologyMolecular biologyMolecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry... - BiodefenseBiodefenseBiodefense refers to short term, local, usually military measures to restore biosecurity to a given group of persons in a given area who are, or may be, subject to biological warfare— in the civilian terminology, it is a very robust biohazard response. It is technically possible to apply...
& Public PolicyPublic policyPublic policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and... - BioethicsBioethicsBioethics is the study of controversial ethics brought about by advances in biology and medicine. Bioethicists are concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, and philosophy....
(PhilosophyPhilosophyPhilosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
) - Biohazardous Threat Agents & Emerging Infectious DiseasesEmerging Infectious DiseasesEmerging Infectious Diseases is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is in the public domain and is published monthly by the CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases...
- Biomedical Science Policy & AdvocacyAdvocacyAdvocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
- BiostatisticsBiostatisticsBiostatistics is the application of statistics to a wide range of topics in biology...
- BiotechnologyBiotechnologyBiotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
- Cell BiologyCell biologyCell biology is a scientific discipline that studies cells – their physiological properties, their structure, the organelles they contain, interactions with their environment, their life cycle, division and death. This is done both on a microscopic and molecular level...
- Health PhysicsHealth physicsHealth physics is a field of science concerned with radiation physics and radiation biology with the goal of providing technical information and proper techniques regarding the safe use of ionizing radiation...
- MicrobiologyMicrobiologyMicrobiology is the study of microorganisms, which are defined as any microscopic organism that comprises either a single cell , cell clusters or no cell at all . This includes eukaryotes, such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes...
& ImmunologyImmunologyImmunology is a broad branch of biomedical science that covers the study of all aspects of the immune system in all organisms. It deals with the physiological functioning of the immune system in states of both health and diseases; malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders ; the... - NeuroscienceNeuroscienceNeuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
- PhysiologyPhysiologyPhysiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
& BiophysicsBiophysicsBiophysics is an interdisciplinary science that uses the methods of physical science to study biological systems. Studies included under the branches of biophysics span all levels of biological organization, from the molecular scale to whole organisms and ecosystems... - Tumor Biology
Notable Research and Development
Researchers at Georgetown have been behind several well-known medical innovations.- The HPV vaccineHPV vaccineThe human papilloma virus vaccine prevents infection with certain species of human papillomavirus associated with the development of cervical cancer, genital warts, and some less common cancers...
was partially developed by a team of Georgetown researchers led by Dr. Richard Schlegel, at the Lombardi Cancer Center. - The anti-histamine AllegraFexofenadineFexofenadine is an antihistamine drug used in the treatment of hayfever and similar allergy symptoms...
was created by Dr. Raymond WoosleyRaymond L. WoosleyRaymond L. Woosley, M.D., Ph.D. is the founding President & CEO of Critical Path Institute . C-Path is an independent, non-profit organization created by the U.S...
, former chairman of the Department of Pharmacology. - Robert Ledley, DDS, developed the Full-Body Scanner and the Automatic Genetic Analyzer during his time at Georgetown.
Partnership with MedStar Health
On June 30, 2000, Georgetown University Medical Center and MedStar HealthMedStar Health
MedStar Health is a $3.9 billion not-for-profit healthcare organization. It operates more than 40 entities, including nine hospitals in the Maryland and Washington, D.C., region of the United States...
, Inc., finalized a clinical partnership agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, MedStar Health owns, operates, and has financial responsibility for Georgetown University's clinical enterprise, which includes the Georgetown University Hospital
Georgetown University Hospital
Georgetown University Hospital is one of the national capital area's oldest academic teaching hospitals and is affiliated with Georgetown University School of Medicine. GUH is a not-for-profit, acute-care teaching and research facility located in Northwest Washington, DC...
, a faculty practice group, and a network of community physician practices.