University of Washington School of Medicine

UW Medicine's Mission
UW Medicine's mission is to improve the health of the public by advancing medical knowledge, providing outstanding primary and specialty care to the people of the region, and preparing tomorrow's physicians, scientists and other health professionals.

UW Medicine owns or operates Harborview Medical Center, Northwest Hospital & Medical Center, Valley Medical Center, University of Washington Medical Center, a network of nine UW Medicine Neighborhood Clinics that provide primary care, the physician practice UW Physicians, the UW School of Medicine and Airlift Northwest. In addition, UW Medicine shares in the ownership and governance of Children's University Medical Group and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, a partnership among UW Medicine, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Children's.

Our faculty includes 3 living Nobel Prize winners (5 in our history), 35 Institute of Medicine members, 32 National Academy of Sciences members and 13 Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators.

Patient Care
Our core hospitals, Harborview, UW Medical Center and Northwest Hospital & Medical Center, together have about 69,000 admissions and about 1.4 million outpatient and emergency room visits to the hospitals and clinics each year. As an academic medical center, UW Medicine provides our patients with the latest in medical discovery, diagnoses and treatments. Our physicians treat patients, as well as conduct scientific research and teach the next generation of medical professionals.

Medic One, the international model for emergency care, was developed at Harborview Medical Center. Medic One was developed in a collaborative effort among Harborview, the Seattle Fire Department and the UW School of Medicine. The system, one of the first of its kind in the world, is the model most emulated by communities throughout the country.

Airlift Northwest, an air medical transport program, was founded by a consortium of hospitals in the Seattle area, including Harborview Medical Center, UW Medical Center and Seattle Children's. Airlift Northwest has provided air medical transport for more than 80,000 patients since 1982.

People

• More than 21,000 employees contribute to the mission of UW Medicine.
• The School of Medicine has approximately 2,000 employed faculty members and more than 4,600 clinical faculty across the WWAMI program who teach medical students, residents and post-doctoral fellows.
• UW Medicine has approximately 4,500 students and trainees across a broad range of undergraduate, professional, and post-graduate programs.

Education
The five-state WWAMI regional medical educational network, serving Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho, is widely considered the best academic model for the training and placing of physicians in underserved communities.

UW School of Medicine has been ranked as the No. 1 primary-care medical school in the country since 1994. In addition, UW Medicine teaching programs are ranked among the best in the country in the 2013 rankings by U.S. News & World Report.

• Family medicine (No. 1 for 21 consecutive years)
• Rural medicine (No. 1 for 21 consecutive years)
• AIDS
• Geriatrics
• Pediatrics
• Bioengineering
• Internal medicine

Research
UW faculty members have been responsible for many basic science and technological advances in medicine. Our faculty have been pioneers in numerous areas, including transgenic animal technology, cell replication and signal transduction research, as well as the development of medical ultrasound, renal dialysis and technology critical to protein science.

UW Medicine researchers are international leaders in genome sciences.

When the National Institutes of Health created the first three National Centers of Excellence in Genomic Sciences, the UW received two of the three awards - one in the School of Medicine and one in the College of Engineering.

Eight living (10 in our history) UW School of Medicine faculty are recognized by the Gairdner Foundation for their seminal contributions to scientific advances worldwide.

UW School of Medicine faculty members are leaders in proteomics - research related to the biomolecular structure of proteins. Understanding protein complexes may lead to treatment and prevention of devastating diseases. UW scientists are studying dystrophin, a protein necessary for muscle health, in the search for muscular dystrophy treatments. Other scientists are studying the structural genomics of protozoa that are pathogens for such diseases as sleeping sickness, leishmaniasis and malaria, which result in many deaths worldwide.

UW biomedical research programs have been ranked consistently among the top three schools in receipt of National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant funding in U.S. News & World Report surveys, which reports UW School of Medicine faculty receiving NIH grants totaling $611 million in fiscal year 2011.

The 2013 rankings:

• Harvard
• University of Washington
• Johns Hopkins

UW School of Medicine research provides a significant economic benefit to the community. UW Medicine generated more than $673 million in research funds last year. A number of established and start-up biotechnology companies, including Zymogenetics and ICOS, have their roots in UW School of Medicine research.

Report to the Community
The Report to the Community reflects a small portion of the work we are doing locally, regionally and worldwide as we transform healthcare. This work is conducted in laboratories, at the bedside in patient care settings, in educational settings by training the next generation of healthcare professionals and scientists, and through public advocacy. The Report to the Community provides an overview of events that have shaped us; how we are hardwiring a culture of excellence; how we are transforming care through public advocacy, key programs, training, research, global engagement and other initiatives; and the results of those efforts.

Events that Shaped the Character of UW Medicine
1940s - 1950s

• March 1, 1945: Gov. Monard C. Wallgren signs Medical-Dental Bill to authorize the formation of UW Schools of Medicine and Dentistry.
• Oct. 2, 1946: First entering class of UW medical students start classes. The school is under the leadership of founding dean Edward Turner. Classrooms and offices are located at King County Hospital and huts on campus.
• March 5, 1947: Ground broken for Health Sciences Building on former golf course situated on north bank of Montlake Cut.
• Aug. 16, 1947: Children's Orthopedic Board of Trustees approves development of a teaching affiliation with UW School of Medicine.
• Sept. 20, 1951: UW medical students train in surgery at Seattle Veterans Administration Hospital, shortly after the hospital affiliated with UW medical school.
• Nov. 10, 1955: Dr. Edmond Fischer and Dr. Edwin Krebs submit for publication a description of reversible protein phosphorylation, work that garners 1992 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine.
• June 12, 1956: Ground broken for University Hospital.
• July 1, 1956: Division of Medical Genetics opens in Department of Medicine as one of first units of its kind in America.
• May 4, 1959: University Hospital (now University of Washington Medical Center) opens.
• July 15, 1959: Comprehensive rehabilitation inpatient program established at University Hospital.

1960s

• March 9, 1960: At University Hospital, world's first long-term dialysis patient is treated on an artificial kidney.
• July 1, 1960: First patient admitted to Clinical Research Center at University Hospital.
• Aug. 12, 1960: As visiting professor, Dr. E. Donnall Thomas performs bone marrow transplant at University Hospital. He later receives 1990 Nobel Prize for cell transplantation work.
• Jan. 3, 1961: Multidisciplinary Pain Clinic opens at University Hospital and soon is world model for diagnosis, study and treatment of chronic and acute pain.
• April 25, 1961: Biochemist Dr. Hans Neurath becomes first UW School of Medicine faculty member elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
• Oct. 1, 1963: UW cardiologists publish their experience with a treadmill test they created, the Bruce Protocol, to measure exercise tolerance in heart patients.
• Oct. 23, 1963: Committee appointed to envisage qualities medical school expects in its graduates. Their deliberations result in major curriculum revisions, which include organ systems approach to teaching.
• Dec. 30, 1963: The UW reports chemical structure of trypsin to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It is the first description of the structure of an enzyme that breaks apart proteins.
• May 27, 1967: Primary Care Physician Curricular Change Subcommittee files its report, thereby initiating medical school's national leadership in educating generalists.
• June 23, 1967: UW Board of Regents and King County enter into a contract in which Harborview Medical Center is managed by the UW, owned by King County, and governed by a county-appointed board of trustees.

1970s

• March 7, 1970: Medic One goes into operation as an on-the-scene, emergency response system for heart attacks and other medical crises. It is a model for emergency response systems around the world.
• April 12, 1970: World's first artificial gut patient begins life-saving treatment with total parenteral nutrition at University Hospital.
• Sept. 1, 1970: Division of Family Medicine founded, the beginning of family practice as a discipline at the UW.
• Nov. 13, 1970: Commonwealth Fund of New York City grant of nearly $1 million for proposal, "Regionalization of Medical Education in the Pacific Northwest," secures start of WAMI Program. WAMI becomes a national model for decentralized medical education and cooperation among states to conserve scarce resources.
• Dec. 17, 1970: Institute of Medicine forms with Dr. John Hogness as first president and Dr. Paul Beeson as a charter member.
• March 29, 1971: After precepting UW medical students in rural family medicine for some years, Family Medical Center in Omak, Wash., and Yakima Valley Clinic in Grandview, Wash., officially become first community clinical training sites in the WAMI Program.
• Sept. 8, 1971: As University of Alaska-Fairbanks starts its academic year, it welcomes its first WAMI students who are taking first-year medical school classes. Alaska is first home-state university site for WAMI Program.
• May 5, 1972: UW and Washington State University formalize a cooperative medical student teaching program between the two institutions.
• June 7, 1972: University of Idaho signs a subcontract with the UW to teach WAMI first-year medical students.
• July 3, 1972: NIH grant awarded for medical school to plan satellite communications for long-distance, interactive learning and patient consultations.
• July 11, 1972: Regents of Montana University system vote to participate in WAMI Program and make Montana State University site of first-year medical classes.
• Sept. 1, 1972: Treasure Valley community clinical training site for obstetrics and gynecology officially opens as part of Idaho WAMI Program.
• June 9, 1973: In The Lancet, UW birth defects researchers call worldwide attention to the serious and lasting harm drinking alcohol during pregnancy can have on the unborn child.
• June 29, 1973: UW researchers publish response to injury hypothesis on origin of atherosclerosis in Science. Theory sparks blood vessel research around the world.
• March 1, 1974: In Transactions in Biomedical Engineering, UW researchers publish first reports of ultrasonic duplex scanning for arterial and venous disorders, an advance that furthers UW's leadership in diagnostic ultrasound.
• April 15, 1974: UW researchers publish findings of a factor that stimulates abnormal proliferation of smooth muscle cells of the artery. Named platelet-dependent growth factor at its discovery, it is later found in cancer cells and cells that repair wounds.
• July 2, 1974: The Burn Center at Harborview Medical Center receives its first patients. It is now a leading center for surgical management of burn wounds.
• Oct. 1, 1974: Regionalized pediatric care system created with burn and trauma treatment at Harborview, perinatology at University Hospital, developmental disability care at the Child Development and Mental Retardation Center, and inpatient, emergency, and specialty clinics at Children's Orthopedic Hospital.
• Feb. 17, 1975: State of Washington passes Family Practice Education Act and funds a statewide family practice residency network.
• June 25, 1977: First group of first-year residents enter two new primary-care training tracks in internal medicine.
• June 30, 1978: WAMI Program becomes self-sustaining. Each state supports first-year medical courses, instruction for its students at UW and clinical teaching sites.
• Aug. 1, 1978: Geriatric and Family Services Clinic opens for elderly people with Alzheimer's and other conditions associated with aging, and to help relatives and caregivers.
  

1980s

• March 14, 1980: First endowed chair at UW medical school created in memory of Dr. Robert H. Williams, founding chair of Department of Medicine.
• June 5, 1981: Report of Curriculum Review Committee accepted. Major overhaul of MD degree curriculum gives all students the same core education and training.
• Feb. 3, 1984: Reports of first isolation of a calcium channel submitted for publication. The molecule couples electrical signals to other regulators of cell activities.
• Sept. 6, 1984: Paper appears in Nature describing expression of human growth hormone in transgenic mice, first report of a foreign gene incorporated into fertilized eggs, functional in resulting offspring, and inherited by next generation.
• Oct. 1, 1985: WAMI Area Health Education Centers program funded to train, recruit and retain health personnel for medically underserved areas.
• Dec. 2, 1985: First clinical tests of erythropoietin (EPO), first blood growth factor manufactured through recombinant DNA, to correct anemia of kidney failure.
• Oct. 1, 1986: Positron emission tomograph (PET) installed. UW is among first medical centers nationwide with a cyclotron, magnetic resonance imager, and PET at one site.
• June 24, 1988: In Science, UW hearing researchers publish first report of inner ear cell regeneration in birds. Before, hearing nerve damage was considered permanent in all adult, land animals with spines.
• Sept. 16, 1988: The Turner Society, the School of Medicine's dean's club, forms in memory of founding dean Edward L. Turner.
• Dec. 16, 1988: Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center established through $7 million gift from Prentice Bloedel in honor of his wife.
• May 8, 1989: Rural/Underserved Opportunities Program sends its first medical students to small towns to acquaint them with practice in physician shortage areas.

1990s

• Sept. 30, 1990: At end of National Institutes of Health 1990 fiscal year, UW medical school for first time exceeds $100 million in NIH grants. The school consistently ranks in top five in federal funding for research.
• Oct. 8, 1990: Dr. E. Donnall Thomas, professor of medicine at the UW and a scientist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, receives Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for pioneering bone marrow transplants.
• Nov. 10, 1990: The class of 1965 announces creation of 25th Reunion Endowment to assist medical education programs. Subsequent 25th reunion classes contribute.
• July 1, 1992: UW health sciences administration reorganized. Medical school and its owned and managed hospitals are consolidated under one administrative structure, with dean of medicine serving as vice president for medical affairs.
• Oct. 12, 1992: Dr. Edmond Fischer and Dr. Edwin Krebs awarded the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for work on protein phosphorylation, a biochemical on/off switch in living cells.
• March 17, 1993: For first time, percentage of UW graduating medical school students matching to primary-care residencies exceeds 50 percent.
• April 14, 1993: Novo Nordisk/ZymoGenetics, Inc., establishes Earl W. Davie/ZymoGenetics Endowed Chair in Biochemistry with a $2 million gift. The first chair created by a biotechnology company recognizes Davie's breakthroughs in discovering and genetically engineering blood clotting factors.
• June 16, 1994: UW and ZymoGenetics scientists report in Nature the discovery, isolation and cloning of thrombopoietin, the elusive factor that stimulates production of platelets, blood cells crucial to clotting.
• June 22, 1994: UW Medical Center becomes nation's first to be certified as a Magnet Hospital for nursing excellence by American Nurses Credentialing Center.
• Sept. 30, 1994: Federal funds granted for Medical Education Research Center at UW, one of first two in the nation. Center studies physician training issues as the basis for policy decisions.
• June 5, 1995: K Wing (now called Fialkow Pavilion) of Health Sciences Center opens. It is the only significant increment in medical school research space in more than 20 years
• Oct. 5, 1995: Montana establishes state's first graduate medical education program, Montana Family Practice Residency.
• Nov. 21, 1995: Researchers submit initial results on work on breast cancer immunology that later leads to formation of Tumor Vaccine Group.
• March 20, 1996: Wyoming becomes fifth state in UW medical school's regional medical education program by joining with long-time partner states Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho to form the WWAMI Program.
• May 1996: UW Board of Regents establishes University of Washington Physicians Network, a network of neighborhood clinics throughout King County that provide primary care. The network is now called UW Medicine Neighborhood Clinics.
• Sept. 22, 1997: Life-like Patient Simulation Center, modeled after flight simulators, readies medical students for real-life anesthesia emergencies.
• Oct. 27, 1997: UW Medicine, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Children's announce formation of Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.
• Jan. 7, 1998: First medical students participate in WWAMI Rural Integrated Training Experience to obtain several months of clinical education in a small town. Libby, Mont.; Othello, Wash; Hailey, Idaho, and Sandpoint, Idaho, become first WRITE towns.
• July 1, 1998: Alaska Family Practice Residency starts its first day training new physicians in first and still only residency program in Alaska.

2000 - 2004

• Jan. 21, 2000: UW Board of Regents approve creation of UW Academic Medicine Board (now called UW Medicine Board.
• June 12, 2000: Research suggests HER-2/neu vaccine targeting breast and ovarian tumors might stimulate immune response in some cancer patients
• March 13, 2000: Division of Neurogenetics opens in Department of Neurology to study and treat inherited diseases of brain and nervous system
• Sept. 6, 2000: Gene and Cell Therapy Core Laboratory opens at UW General Clinical Research Center.
• Oct. 16, 2000: $10 million grant awarded from Programs for Genomic Applications to study genetic variation, and genetic variants in disease resistance and susceptibility.
• Nov. 19, 2000: Researchers report statin and niacin treatment reduces risk of heart attacks and may reverse plaque build-up in blood vessels.
• Oct. 30, 2000: Hepatitis C Cooperative Research Center established.
• Dec. 11, 2000: The UW becomes a federally funded Center of Excellence in Gene Therapy Research.
• Feb. 12, 2001: Computational method called Rosetta proven successful in predicting 3-D structure of protein from its linear amino acid sequence.
• Feb. 22, 2001: The UW joins national consortium of institutions in studying health in space travelers.
• Sept. 25, 2001: UW Genome Center established.
• Oct. 8, 2001: Leland Hartwell shares the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for discoveries of key regulators of cell cycle.
• Oct. 31, 2001: Department of Genetics and Department of Molecular Biotechnology consolidate into Department of Genome Sciences.
• June 27, 2002: Gene necessary for development of type 1 diabetes in rats is also found in humans.
• July 1, 2002: UW Medicine College System is established to give more personalized medical education in basic clinical skills and professionalism.
• July 17, 2002: Seattle researchers begin study of mechanisms and markers related to the spread of prostate cancer.
• Sept. 12, 2002: Gene therapy is shown to reverse muscular dystrophy in mice.
• March 26, 2002: Study links genes to success of high blood pressure treatment with diuretics.
• Sept. 3, 2003: UW Medicine launches South Lake Union research hub Phase I.
• Sept. 4, 2003: WWAMI Regional Center of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases is established.
• Aug. 31, 2004: UW begins study of implications of genomics in medically underserved populations.
• July 24, 2004: Delivery method found for dystrophin gene therapy that reaches all voluntary muscles in mice and reverses muscle wasting of muscular dystrophy.
• Oct. 4, 2004: Linda Buck becomes seventh woman in history to receive Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine; she shares prize for discoveries of odorant receptors and organization of the olfactory system.

2005 - 2009

• March 4, 2005: Institute for Simulation and Interprofessional Studies (ISIS) is initiated to enhance procedural skills training, medical teamwork and patient safety.
• May 27, 2005: Genetic factor responsible for patient variability in warfarin response identified.
• Jan. 16, 2006: Department of Global Health, jointly operated by UW School of Medicine and UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine, is created.
• March 6, 2006: President Jimmy Carter and Microsoft's Bill Gates III dedicate the William H. Foege Building for departments of bioengineering and genome sciences.
• Feb. 16, 2006: Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine is established at UW Medicine at South Lake Union.
• June 8, 2006: HPV vaccine, shown effective in preventing certain types of cervical cancers, is FDA-approved for administration to young women.
• Dec. 12, 2006: A gene linked to type of pancreatic cancer that runs in families is discovered.
• June 4, 2007: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation is established with $105 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
• Sept. 18, 2007: NIH National Center for Research Resources funds Institute of Translational Health Sciences with a $62 million grant.
• March 14, 2008: Ancestral genome of humans is found to have undergone burst of DNA duplication.
• March 18, 2008: Molecular engineers design new enzymes from scratch.
• March 27, 2008: Genetic errors are linked to schizophrenia.
• June 17, 2008: Ribbon cut for Norm Maleng Building, an expansion of hospital and clinic space for Harborview Medical Center patients.
• June 26, 2008: UW Medicine South Lake Union research complex Phase II opens.
• June 30, 2008: UW Medicine completes $1 billion fundraising campaign.
• Oct. 18, 2008: Artificial connection allows brain cells to control paralyzed muscles.
• March 6, 2009: First evidence shown for defunct gene making a comeback during human evolution.
• April 8, 2009: Ninth & Jefferson Building opens to house Harborview-based specialty care and King County forensic, psychiatric and public health services.
• July 6, 2009: UW Medicine Eye Institute opens at Harborview to treat vision and eye problems, and to study vision and find new treatments for eye diseases.
• Aug. 5, 2009: Ground broken for UW Medical Center expansion.
• Sept. 15, 2009: Gene therapy successfully treats color-blindness in monkeys.
• Sept. 29, 2009: Northwest Genome Center created for large-scale DNA sequencing studies of common disorders.
• Nov. 10, 2009: Final documents signed for Northwest Hospital & Medical Center to join UW Medicine.

2010

• Jan. 1, 2010: Northwest Hospital & Medical Center joins UW Medicine.
• Jan. 22, 2010: Surgeons at UW Medical Center perform medical center's 1,500th liver transplant.
• Jan. 27, 2010: Herpes medication found not to reduce risk of HIV transmission.
• Jan. 29, 2010: Institute for Simulation and Interprofessional Studies (ISIS) opens Harborview site.
• March 5, 2010: Gene discovered that affects TB susceptibility, along with clues to how it works.
• April 12, 2010: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) reports maternal deaths worldwide drop from more than 500,000 to less than 350,000.
• April 28, 2010: UW Regents approve Phase 3 of UW Medicine South Lake Union development.
• May 24, 2010: IHME reports world decline in newborn mortality drives childhood deaths below 8 million a year.
• Aug. 15, 2010: Genetic alterations common to Kabuki syndrome discovered through streamlined DNA sequencing.
• Aug. 16, 2010: Genetic link discovered between immune system and Parkinson's disease.
• Sept. 14, 2010: TRUST program expands rural training opportunities for medical students.
• Oct. 15, 2010: First WWAMI Graduate Medical Education Summit held in Spokane.
• Oct. 25, 2010: First implanted device to treat Menier's disorder tested in patient.
• Oct. 28, 2010: Chair of Pharmacology William Catterall wins Gairdner Award.
• Oct. 29, 2010: New methods detect subtleties in human genome's repetitive landscapes.
• Nov. 14, 2010: DNA sequences linked to electrical signal conduction in the heart.

2011

• Feb. 27, 2011: HIV vaccine changes genetic makeup of AIDS virus.
• March 29, 2011: UW to host global health database.
• May 5, 2011: Newly occurring gene mutations identified in autistic children.
• June 9, 2011: UW Medicine and Valley Medical Center form alliance.
• June 24, 2011: Wyoming increases class size to 20.
• July 6, 2011: Third phase of UW Medicine South Lake Union breaks ground.
• July 13, 2011: AIDS medications prevent HIV transmission in men and women in Africa.
• July 19, 2011: One-dose gene therapy shows promise of protecting against atherosclerosis.
• Aug. 18, 2011: Alaska's first class of physician assistants graduates.
• Sept. 4, 2011: Gene defect discovered that predisposes people to leukemia.
• Sept. 12, 2011: Intranasal insulin may benefit adults in cognitive decline.
• Sept. 18, 2011: Protein-folding game players solve AIDS enzyme puzzle that baffled scientists
• Sept. 27, 2011: Genome mapped for advanced prostate cancer.
• Oct. 1, 2011: UW Medicine Ravenna Clinic opens.
• Oct. 3, 2011: Hormonal contraceptives increase HIV risk, African study shows.
• Nov. 2, 2011: New medication effectively treats molecular mechanism of cystic fibrosis.
• Nov. 21, 2011: UW Medical Center becomes nation's only hospital to receive Magnet nursing designation for fifth time.
• Nov. 22, 2011: Bionic contact lenses project images into eyes.
• Dec. 6, 2011: Center for Mendelian Genomics established.

2012

• Jan 1, 2012: Genetic variation in B cells linked to autoimmune disease - diabetes, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis.
• Jan 20, 2012: Medical school launches continuous curriculum renewal initiative.
• Jan 31, 2012: FDA approves UW-tested drug to treat genetic mechanism of cystic fibrosis, the first of its kind.
• Feb 3, 2012: UW Medicine's diversity strategic plan moves forward; Center for Equity, Diversity and Inclusiveness formed.
• Feb 17, 2012: Brain image differences evident at 6 months in babies later diagnosed with autism.
• Feb 20, 2012: UW Neighborhood Clinic Northgate opens and houses family medicine residency training program.
• Mar 9, 2012: Too much manganese linked to brain cell degeneration.
• Mar 21, 2012: UW Medical Center becomes first in Pacific Northwest to discharge Total Artificial Heart patient.
• Mar 21, 2012: Circumcision tied to lower prostate cancer risk.
• Mar 23, 2012: Second WWAMI Graduate Medical Education Summit held in Spokane.
• Apr 5, 2012: Sporadic gene mutations, more common in older dads, give rise to autism.
• Apr 13, 2012: Institute for Protein Design established to structure medically useful biomolecules.
• Apr 19, 2012: Health metrics reveals decline in female life expectancy in several U.S. areas.
• May 11, 2012: Palliative Care Center of Excellence created to foster comfort of patients with serious, incurable conditions.
• May 21, 2012: UW selected as a federally funded Center of Excellence in Pain Education.
• Jun 6, 2012: Baby's genome deciphered prenatally from parents' lab samples.
• Jul 10, 2012: Unsuspected gene mutation contributes to infection susceptibility in cystic fibrosis.
• Jul 13, 2012: Clues discovered as to why human body can't fight HIV.
• Jul 16, 2012: UW global health study pivotal to FDA approval of HIV prevention drug.
• Jul 21, 2012: Multiple Sclerosis Center opens at Northwest Hospital.
• Jul 23, 2012: NIH awards $65 million grant to Institute for Translational Health Sciences to turn promising discoveries into patient care advances.
• Jul 25, 2012: Novel chemical helps blind mice see.
• Jul 27, 2012: Molecular and protein markers discovered for liver transplant failure from hepatitis C.

Fiscal Year 2012 Annual Report-Executive Summary
Johnese SpissoDuring fiscal year (FY) 2012 UW Medicine focused on continuing the implementation of key priorities of the Strategic Plan. One of the major accomplishments was the strategic alliance with Valley Medical Center in Renton, which became UW Medicine's eighth entity in July 2011. UW Medicine now includes Harborview Medical Center, Valley Medical Center, UW Medical Center, Northwest Hospital & Medical Center, UW Neighborhood Clinics, UW Physicians, UW School of Medicine and Airlift Northwest. The expanded health system best positions us to serve our region for primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary care and to excel in teaching and research to achieve our mission of improving health.

The faculty, staff and leadership team have demonstrated enthusiasm dedication and innovation when developing and implementing the strategic plan goals. Key efforts in teamwork and collaboration amongst all entities have continued success. The process for engaging in dialogue and listening to feedback from internal and external constituents has enabled substantial progress. As we look forward to FY 2013 we will continue to focus on effective and timely implementation of key priorities. Our ongoing efforts in working as a system will be critical to the success in achieving these goals.

The FY 2013 UW Medicine strategic plan initiatives focus on building key clinical programs through direct investment and the development of core systems and organizational capabilities that support those services required to meet our mission. To best prepare for national health reform and to enhance our ability to function as an integrated health care system several important changes to the strategic plan have been made. These are summarized below in the chart. The UW Medicine's strategic plan remains an ongoing process to be readily adaptable as the overall impact of health reform is assessed and opportunities are analyzed.

University of Washington School of Medicine Degree Programs :

Medicine

Dentistry

Nursing

Pharmacy

Public Health

Video Presentation

School of Medicine University of Washington

The University of Washington School of Medicine is the medical school for a five state region Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. Students train in rural community clinics in these five states as well as at Harborview Medical Center and University of Washington Medical Center, two of the regions most comprehensive, state-of-the-art health-care facilities.