Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM) has experienced remarkable gains in research success as a result of a strategy that prioritizes investments in areas with a strong base of expertise, existing philanthropic and grant support, and a high likelihood of emerging as one of the nation’s top programs in the field. The results of this strategic and targeted approach to research have been staggering.
Health Sciences & Health Care
Funding from the National Institutes of Health is up more than 54% in five years and reached a record high of nearly $150 million in the federal fiscal year that ended in September 2018. The school was awarded $362 million in external research funding from all sources in the university’s 2018–19 fiscal year.
Significant funding gains were realized in support of research related to neurodegenerative diseases, traumatic brain injury, cancer, and musculoskeletal health. Indiana University School of Medicine has developed into one of the nation’s premier institutions in the field of Alzheimer’s disease research and has repeatedly been selected by the National Institutes of Health to lead nationwide initiatives. These gains are due to a combination of strategic recruiting and IU School of Medicine targeted investments in neuroscience research programs.
IUSM faculty continue to conduct highly collaborative and interdisciplinary research aimed at eliminating cancer as a cause of suffering. The Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center has achieved the highest recognition from the National Cancer Institute: Comprehensive Cancer Center. With this elite federal designation signifying research excellence, it becomes the only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in Indiana and one of just 51 in the nation. Overall, the IU Simon Cancer Center received an “outstanding” rating by NCI reviewers and was awarded a five-year, $13.8 million grant that supports the center’s research programs and shared facilities. That marks an increase of 43% from the previous five-year funding period.
The IU School of Medicine was an early leader in research involving osteoporosis and other metabolic bone disorders. During the period of the Bicentennial Strategic Plan, the school further cemented its leadership in this critical space through the establishment of the Indiana Center for Musculoskeletal Health. The center is dedicated to discovering and developing new therapies, preventative strategies, and technologies to address musculoskeletal conditions that affect more than half of American adults. The school successfully recruited a nationally recognized leader to lead the burgeoning program, and the center’s faculty have demonstrated continued excellence. They have secured significant external grant funding and—notably—saw FDA approval of a new drug to treat a rare bone disease based on IU School of Medicine research.
Indiana University School of Medicine is leading the world’s largest and most comprehensive study of concussion with the goal of understanding how to detect, prevent, and treat these common brain injuries. During the period of the Bicentennial Strategic Plan, IU School of Medicine faculty received an additional $22.5 million in new funding from the Department of Defense and NCAA to expand the research program.
IUSM faculty physicians provide the highest quality care to patients throughout Indiana and to those who travel from afar to access the school’s diverse expertise. The school is closely aligned with Indiana University Health, the state’s largest and most comprehensive health care system with 17 hospitals across Indiana, including Methodist, University, and Riley Hospitals in downtown Indianapolis. This unique partnership enables IU School of Medicine’s faculty physicians to seamlessly integrate research findings into patient care and to offer promising clinical research studies to patients close to home. IU Health’s statewide footprint also allows IU School of Medicine to influence the delivery of care outside the traditional academic health center and to provide the most advanced therapies to patients in community hospitals throughout Indiana.
In addition, the school has placed an increased emphasis on interprofessional education. The Indiana University Interprofessional Practice and Education Center, founded in 2014 and based at the IU School of Medicine, has helped pave the way for increased collaboration among students in diverse health sciences programs. This intentional approach to preparing students for collaboration in practice results in graduates who can effectively lead and participate in teams that work together across the health and health care delivery spectrum. Among scores of initiatives, the Interprofessional Practice and Education Center has led the implementation of Team Education Advancing Collaboration in Healthcare (TEACH!), a longitudinal curriculum that students in the IU Schools of Medicine,
Dentistry, Health and Human Sciences, Nursing, and Optometry, the School of Public Health in Bloomington, Fairbanks School of Public Health at IUPUI, and in the Purdue College of Pharmacy complete over the course of their studies.