Vanderbilt University
Medical Center

Vanderbilt University Medical Center has built a strong reputation as a leader in medical education, research and patient care throughout the Southeast and the nation over the course of its 135-year history. At its heart the Vanderbilt Medical Center is driven by discovery and the immediate incorporation of new knowledge into innovation in patient care and physician and nurse education.

As a national leader in medical education, research and patient care, the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) has strong interests in federal developments affecting these areas.

Research
Biomedical research at Vanderbilt has long been recognized for its contributions to the advancement of medicine. The Medical School’s reputation for outstanding research is reflected in the amount of federal and private support it receives. Because of the creativity of the faculty, the School of Medicine ranked No. 10 among U.S. medical schools for National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for federal fiscal year 2008. VUMC research funding from all sources has doubled since 2001. In FY 2011, the Medical Center received over $333 million from NIH; the University received a total of over $371 million from NIH and nearly $460 million in federal funding.

Major translational research initiatives at Vanderbilt are moving discoveries from the bench to the bedside and will transform health care and health care delivery.

Vanderbilt’s DNA databank, called BioVU, hit a major milestone in late 2010 – it contains over 100,000 samples. This makes the databank one of the nation's most comprehensive collections of human DNA that is linked to searchable, electronic health information.

Vanderbilt in partnership with Meharry Medical College has received a $50 million award from the NIH to support clinical and translational research Infrastructure and to promote translation of discoveries in bench and clinical research to improved human health.

At the School of Nursing, the faculty engage in research aimed at improving the lives of individuals, families and communities. Faculty researchers collaborate with investigators from across the Medical Center, University and the world. School of Nursing researchers accomplish their mission through studies that emphasize clinical and health services interventions. The School prepares future researchers primarily through its Ph.D. and post-doctoral education programs.

Patient Care
Vanderbilt clinics had over 1,500,000 patient visits in 2010, with more than 53,000 patients admitted to the hospitals. A principal referral center for physicians and patients throughout the region, Vanderbilt University Hospital and the Vanderbilt clinics consistently rank among the premier health-care facilities in the United States. Vanderbilt University Hospital and the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt are two of only three Tennessee hospitals included on the list of “America’s Best Hospitals” compiled by U.S. News & World Report magazine

Among Vanderbilt’s specialty programs is the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, the only Comprehensive Cancer Center designated by the National Cancer Institute in Tennessee that conducts research and provides care for adult and pediatric cancers. The Cancer Center provides innovative, multi-disciplinary care for patients and families along with comprehensive programs in discovery science; translational, clinical and population-based research; and prevention, early detection and survivorship. It is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a non-profit alliance of the 21 of the world’s elite centers collaborating to improve the quality and effectiveness of cancer care for patients everywhere.

Additionally, VUMC’s Level I trauma center, comprehensive burn center and LifeFlight air emergency transport program offer critical trauma care to a three-state region. The Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt is the most comprehensive children’s hospital in the state and is dedicated to meeting the unique health care needs of children, from newborns to young adults, by providing primary and sub-specialty services. Children’s Hospital serves as a regional referral center and has been recognized by U.S. News and World Report as one of the best children’s hospitals in the nation.

The Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute has become one of the nation’s foremost cardiac research programs. U.S. News & World Report recently ranked Vanderbilt Heart and Vascular Institute 23rd on its list of “Best Hospitals” in the Heart and Heart Surgery category.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center is leading the way in advancing personalized medicine. VUMC has launched a program called PREDICT (Pharmacogenomic Resource for Enhanced Decisions in Care and Treatment) that tests for 184 genetic variants for all heart catheterization patients. The genetic test results are then entered into a personal electronic medical record that tells physicians which drugs will not work for certain patients.

*Note: Information taken from 2011 Factbook.