Maintaining the Edge

Computational medicine and bioinformatics, cardiac surgery gain stature as independent departments

Not since the Department of Emergency Medicine was created in 1999 has the Medical School established a new department. Recently, however, the U-M Regents approved two.

The departments of Cardiac Surgery and of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics join more than two dozen other clinical and basic science departments which comprise the Medical School. The move signifies the growing importance, evolution and contribution to clinical medicine and biomedical science represented by the two fields, and the Medical School’s commitment to remain on the competitive edge of medical education, patient care and medical research.

Cardiac surgery at the U-M continues to be a leader in treating the wide range of cardiac diseases, from congenital abnormalities to problems of the elderly. One of the first pediatric open-heart operations in the nation was performed at the U-M in 1960; today U-M surgeons perform more than 2,000 heart operations a year. Cardiac surgery programs housed at the U-M Cardiovascular Center and the U-M C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital are consistently ranked among the top in the nation. Beyond its clinical significance to the Health System, cardiac surgery’s research programs are expected to expand in the areas of health outcomes research and clinical trials.

The Center for Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics was created in 2005 as a campus-wide, interdisciplinary center financed within the Medical School. The center distinguished itself as a distinct discipline with highly regarded research and graduate training programs. Now, the Medical School is one of the first in the country to establish a comprehensive department of computational medicine and bioinformatics. The department will continue to support the collaborative environment that has successfully built bridges to faculty across the university in research and training.

Computational biology is the process of analyzing and interpreting data, and bioinformatics is the science where biology, computer science and technology combine to achieve new biological insights. It involves data such as nucleotide and amino acid sequences, protein domains and protein structures. Clinical informatics involves managing and analyzing clinical data from electronic health records for patients being treated and participants in clinical and translational research.

“Establishing these new departments is critical to sustaining and enhancing the university’s excellence in the fields of cardiac surgery and computational medicine and bioinformatics,” says James O. Woolliscroft, M.D. (Residency 1980), dean of the Medical School and the Lyle C. Roll Professor of Medicine. Both departments will expand academic growth and research potential. —RICK KRUPINSKI

 

Alumnus to Lead Ophthalmology at the U-M

Paul Lee, who earned his M.D. at the U-M in 1986, Will return to the Medical School on February 1, 2012, to become chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and the F. Bruce Fralick Professor of Ophthalmology.

Currently vice chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at Duke University, Lee also serves as director of Applied Health Systems Research and as the senior advisor to the chancellor. Additionally, he chairs the finance committee of the physician practice and is a member of the executive management committee of the Duke University Health System. Lee serves on the board of directors of the American Board of Ophthalmology, and has held leadership positions with numerous national and international organizations.

Lee has a significant scholarly background, with extensive publications and research funding in assessing and improving quality of care, quality of life and outcomes, and health systems utilization and policy. Clinically, he specializes in glaucoma and complex glaucoma surgery. In addition to his Michigan M.D., Lee completed his residency at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University, a fellowship in glaucoma at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, and a law degree from Columbia University.

Lee’s leadership follows that of another alumnus, Paul R. Lichter (M.D. 1964, Residency 1968), who has successfully guided the department and its growth for more than 30 years. Lichter will remain on the faculty after the leadership transition. —RK

 

James Woolliscroft, M.D. (left), dean of the Medical School, met in Beijing in September with Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and Yang Ke, M.D., executive vice president of Peking University and Peking University Health Science Center. Woolliscroft and Ke led a symposium hosted by Peking University, for the two universities’ Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research. The governor was on a trade mission to Beijing at the same time. For more: Beijing Symposium: Different Cultures, Common Goals.