Message from the Vice President for Medical Affairs and Dean of the UW School of Medicine

This year, we have changed the name of our annual report from the UW Medicine Dean's Report to the UW Medicine Report to the Community. We have made this change because the community is at the heart of what we do. Our community is the reason we exist, and the power that motivates us. UW Medicine's mission is to improve the health of the people we serve in our local, regional, national, and global community. We aspire to provide groundbreaking medical education, research, and patient care to serve our constituents. In this report, I'm delighted to bring you highlights of activities and progress from the past year.

UW Medicine literally broke new ground in 2004. Laboratory space for medical research is being built at several locations. On the UW campus, the William Foege Building is being constructed to house the departments of bioengineering and genome sciences. UW Medicine, which has become part of Seattle's South Lake Union research hub, also is renovating a building to house laboratories at 815 Mercer. Providing faculty researchers with optimal resources is an investment in medical advances. As new space become available, the laboratories will become the setting for work on cancer vaccines, molecular and cellular therapies, novel approaches to combating infections, and other projects. Scientific talent, modern space, financial resources, new ideas, and perseverance are a powerful combination. The accomplishments resulting from this combination will drive both the medical and economic success of our region.

New space also allows us to advance clinical care. This past year the Patricia Bracelin Steele Memorial Building opened to house several Harborview Medical Center clinics and offices. A new surgery pavilion at UW Medical Center increased our medical centers' ability to meet local and regional demands for primary, specialized, and tertiary care. UW Medicine faculty made many significant contributions this past year to improving health care, including implanting artificial corneas, making gall bladder surgery safer, improving organ transplantation, and providing new information about detecting ovarian cancer.

It has been a landmark year for medical education as well. UW Medicine received national attention for its Colleges program, in which medical students work closely with faculty mentors at the bedside and throughout their education. Other medical schools are beginning to emulate this innovation that provides personalized attention to students as they learn fundamental clinical skills and professionalism. When students spend time early in their education with patients and a mentor at the bedside, they develop comfort, proficiency, and compassion, and learn the meaning of patient-centered care. We anticipate that these experiences will positively influence the care that UW Medicine graduates provide for patients throughout their careers.

Medicine faces many challenges in the 21st century, but it holds just as many opportunities. At no other time has UW Medicine held so much potential to help its community. It is a privilege to stand in partnership with our community members as we work together for better health and a better world.

Paul G. Ramsey, M.D.
Vice President for Medical Affairs and
Dean of the School of Medicine
University of Washington

Paul G. Ramsey, M.D.