Message from the Dean
 The past year has been one of many milestones for the School of Medicine.
WVU was recognized as one of the top schools whose graduates choose family medicine for their residencies. The recognition from the American Academy of Family Physicians symbolizes what the late Governor Okey Patteson envisioned in the creation of West Virginia’s first medical school – operating as a force of great good for all of West Virginia.
We said goodbye this year to our previous dean, John E. Prescott, MD, whose 15 years of leadership exemplified a commitment to the four missions of community service, education, patient care and research. We wish him well in his new role as chief academic officer of the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Education is the mission that defines the School of Medicine. We are all educators, whether our primary job is to see patients or carry out research. Thousands of learners – most of them the sons and daughters of West Virginians – have sat in our classrooms, learning to be doctors, therapists, and other health professionals.
As today’s students move on to careers of service, multiple generations of patients and their families receive this gift of education and care every day.
We pause only briefly to celebrate our successes. The passion and dedication we all share in our mission of preparing students for the world inspires us as we go forward with renewed energy.
Jim Brick, MD
Interim Dean, School of Medicine
Message from the Vice President
 All across West Virginia, and around the world, the impact of the WVU School of Medicine is changing lives for the better.
On our three campuses, more than 1,500 students are preparing for careers of service. Each competed against a pool of highly qualified applicants for the opportunity to benefit from the School of Medicine’s programs. Each is now enjoying the one-on-one teaching that is the hallmark of our educational experience.
In rural communities across the state, our graduates are providing vitally-needed health care. A dozen West Virginia counties that were classified as health professions shortage areas a decade ago have moved off that list – in large part because of the partnerships we have built to educate, recruit, and retain physicians and other providers.
Patients are finding it easier to access the most advanced care – both on our campuses and throughout the state – as we strengthen our network of faculty and community health care providers.
WVU is contributing more each year toward the advancement of medical science. The investments we have made in the past several years are bearing fruit – a growing research faculty, rising external support for research, and a substantial body of contributions to medical and scientific journals.
The success we enjoy today is built on the foundations laid for us more than a half-century ago, when this academic health center was established. The School of Medicine is at the heart of that effort. This report shows once again that our School is meeting its mission.
Fred Butcher, PhD
Interim Vice President for Health Sciences |