Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai’s 29th annual Convocation Ceremony, held Monday, September 29, honored 10 physician-scientists whose groundbreaking achievements have made them leaders in the fields of cancer, HIV/AIDs, immunology, microbiology, ophthalmology, psychiatry, rheumatology, surgery, and urology.
Peter W. May, Chairman, Boards of Trustees, Mount Sinai Health System, welcomed the honorees, their families and friends, physicians and staff, and donors to the ceremony in Goldwurm Auditorium.
“Today, we commend not only those whose endeavors transform the practice of medicine, but also the many philanthropists whose vision and generosity have championed their vital work,” said Mr. May. “Our patients rely on the clinical and scientific breakthroughs generated by our extraordinary faculty. Likewise, our faculty relies on the partnership and vision of our most devoted supporters, whose unwavering commitment to Mount Sinai has sustained and expanded our research enterprise for generations.”
Dennis S. Charney, MD, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and President for Academic Affairs, Mount Sinai Health System, presided over the Convocation Ceremony and delivered the annual State-of-the-School Address. (For a copy of the State-of-the-School Address, please visit: http://icahn.mssm.edu/StateoftheSchool2014.)
“This has been the most transformative time in the history of Mount Sinai, starting with our 2013 combination with the former Continuum Health system,” Dr. Charney said. “We support a culture of innovation for our students and scientists to do their best work, and we have branded Mount Sinai as the place to go for the best clinical care.”
At a time marked by overall cuts in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, Dr. Charney said Mount Sinai’s NIH funding increased by 15 percent between 2013 and 2014, to reach $247 million. Icahn School of Medicine ranks as No . 4 among U.S. medical schools in research dollars per principal investigator.
More than 900 new faculty members from across the Mount Sinai Health System’s seven hospital campuses have joined Icahn School of Medicine this year, Dr. Charney said, and Mount Sinai now has the largest graduate medical education program in the United States.
Dr. Charney also pointed to Mount Sinai’s partnership with National Jewish Health, based in Denver, to advance research and patient care in respiratory and related diseases; and the establishment of institutes that focus on primary care, critical care, global health, diabetes, and neuroscience.
Additional examples of Mount Sinai’s leadership, he said, include a series of Mount Sinai Expert Guides being produced in conjunction with Wiley in the areas of gastroenterology, hepatology, cardiology, allergy and immunology, psychiatry, and neurology.
He noted the expansion of Mount Sinai’s technology transfer organization, Mount Sinai Innovation Partners; Mount Sinai’s commitment to advancing diversity among students and faculty; the launch of a promising biotech company, Dual Therapeutics, from a Mount Sinai laboratory; and Icahn School of Medicine’s standing as No . 5 among Fast Company’s list of most innovative companies in 2014.
Supporting a culture of innovation means tolerating failure, Dr. Charney said. “Playing it safe means you probably won’t break new ground.”