Perelman School of Medicine Overview

Perelman School of Medicine Resources

Penn Medicine is a $4.3 billion enterprise dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and quality patient care. It comprises The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS). Dr. J. Larry Jameson is the Executive Vice President of the University for the Health System and Dean of the Medical School. Dr Rubenstein oversees both UPHS and the Perelman School of Medicine. PENN Medicine employs more than 21,000 people and had total operating revenue in FY2011 of $4.3 billion.

The Perelman School of Medicine was founded in 1765 by John Morgan and William Shippen, native Philadelphians who graduated from the medical school of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. The emphasis, from the outset, was to integrate medical research with education. The first students of the school graduated in 1768. Today, Penn's Perelman School of Medicine is ranked #3 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's most recent ranking of top research-oriented medical schools.

Education at the Perelman School of Medicine

Presently there are over 1,900 full-time faculty; 1,133 residents and fellows; and 724 post-doctoral fellows working in 57 departments, divisions and centers.

In FY2011, there were 597 full-time pre-doctoral students.

In FY2011, there were also 746 medical students. Generally, the first year class numbers approximately 150 students.

There are 157 biomedical graduate students enrolled in combined degree programs, leading to an M.D. combined with a Ph.D., Master of Bioethics, Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology (MSCE), Master of Public Health (MPH), or Master of Business Administration (MBA).

Research at the Perelman School of Medicine

The Perelman School of Medicine has continued to enhance its leadership role in biomedical research.

In federal FY2011, the Penn PSOM received $479.3 million in NIH research awards.

A total of 75 individuals at Penn Medicine are elected members of the Institute of Medicine, one of the highest honors in medicine.

A total of 48 patents were received by Perelman School of Medicine faculty in FY2011.

The Perelman School of Medicine was awarded more than 330 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (“stimulus”) grants from NIH with total project costs of more than $180 million.

Currently, the total area of all PSOM facilities is an estimated 2.55M gross square feet, and the area dedicated for research is approximately 1.44M net square feet. Since 1990 the PSOM has added approximately 800K total net square feet of space, including the Translational Research Laboratories, the Hill Pavilion, a new animal facility, and supplemental space in the Mutch Building. The Translational Research Center offers a new home for interdisciplinary emphasis on translational research.

Penn is a major research facility of the Howard Hughes Medical Institution (HHMI) with 8 HHMI investigators.

An important institutional resource which supports patient oriented research is the Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics (ITMAT). Under the leadership of director Garret A. FitzGerald, M.D., ITMAT supports research at the interface of basic and clinical research, with a particular focus on the development of new and safer therapeutic entities. ITMAT includes its own faculty and basic research space, the former General Clinical Research Center (GCRC) which has been integrated with that of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to form the Clinical and Translational Research Center (CTRC) and an expanding repertoire of cores, programs, and centers designed to support research endeavors between proof of concept in cellular and animal model systems across the translational divide into proof of concept and dose selection in humans. Educational programs relating to translational research, including a newly founded Masters in Translational Research, are also housed within ITMAT. ITMAT has expanded to include investigators focused on clinical and translational research in all schools at Penn, the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the Wistar Institute, and the University of Sciences in Philadelphia. These partner institutions competed successfully for the Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) funded under the NIH Roadmap, designating ITMAT as the academic home for the program.

The Perelman School of Medicine has 21 research cores offering a number of services, from molecular profiling to cell sorting to high resolution electron microscopy. These diverse resources provide access to state-of-the-art equipment and instrumentation, technical expertise and training and education, all designed to support innovative, cutting-edge research.

Also affiliated with the research and educational functions of the Perelman School of Medicine are the Penn Presbyterian Medical Center (PPMC), The Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center (PVAMC) and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP)..

The University of Pennsylvania Health System was founded in 1993 as the nation's first integrated academic health system. It includes three wholly-owned hospitals: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), Pennsylvania Hospital, and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; a faculty practice plan (Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania); a primary-care provider network (Clinical Care Associates); two multispecialty satellite facilities (Penn Medicine at Radnor and Penn Medicine at Cherry Hill); the Penn Center for Rehabilitation and Care; and UPHS Home Healthcare and Hospice Services.

The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) was the first formal University Hospital in the United States, founded in 1874 with a commitment to bedside teaching by faculty, a model developed in the British Isles. The Hospital comprises 814 licensed beds. It employs over 6,400 individuals, including 1,713 physicians in almost 2 million square feet of space spread over 16 interconnected buildings. Features of the Hospital include the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania, one of only 39 National Cancer Institute (NCI) designated comprehensive cancer centers in the nation; the General Clinical Research Center (GCRC), which conducts clinical trials; and PennSTAR, a critical-care flight program with three helicopters that transfer critically injured patients in the Philadelphia region. During FY2011, there were 37,849 adult admissions; 1,405,490 outpatient visits, 60,968 emergency room visits, and 4,395 births. HUP has been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top 10 “Honor Roll” hospitals, one of only 18 hospitals chosen from approximately 5,400 surveyed.

Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation’s first hospital, was founded in 1751 by Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Thomas Bond. The campus includes specialty treatment centers, such as the Joan Karnell Cancer Center and the PENN Neurological Institute. Pennsylvania Hospital has 569 licensed patient beds and 736 physicians in almost 1 million sf of space spread over 15 buildings. During FY2011, there were 23,603 adult admissions; 84,966 outpatient visits; 33,232 emergency room visits; and 4,827 births..

Penn Presbyterian Medical Center houses a number of specialties including Penn Cardiac Care, Penn Orthopaedics, and the Scheie Eye Institute. Presbyterian Hospital has 331 patient beds and 828 physicians occupying over 617,000 square feet in 10 interconnected buildings. During FY2011, there were 16,810 adult admissions; 99,277 outpatient visits; and 38,545 emergency room visits.

The Ruth and Raymond Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine is a state-of-the-art, 500,000-square-foot outpatient facility located adjacent to HUP. It is designed to create an ideal environment for patient-focused care. The Perelman Center houses 19 clinical specialties including cardiovascular medicine, an outpatient surgical pavilion, and the Abramson Cancer Center. A national leader in cancer research, patient care, and education, the Abramson Cancer Center has been designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center by the National Cancer Institute for more than 30 years, and is today one of 40 such Centers in the United States. In 2010, The Abramson Cancer Center was rated “exceptional”, the highest possible rating, from the National Cancer Institute.

Connected to the Perelman Center, the Translational Research Center (TRC) is a $353 million state-of-the-art basic research facility with an open, flexible design meant to facilitate interaction between scientists and physicians in order to integrate basic and clinical research.

Occupying 75,000 square feet beneath both TRC and Perelman Center is the Roberts Proton Therapy Center, the largest facility of its kind in the world. The Roberts Proton Therapy Center uses proton beam radiation to precisely target tumors, with less radiation reaching the surrounding healthy tissues than in conventional radiation treatments. Along with saving lives, a key mission of Penn’s proton therapy center is to improve the treatment of cancer through research, by conducting innovative trials to discover the best uses of proton therapy and find new ways to reduce the side effects associated with radiation therapy. Unlike free-standing proton therapy facilities, Penn’s is fully integrated within the Abramson Cancer Center, offering each patient the most appropriate, effective, and comprehensive treatment plan.

The Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania (CPUP) are the ambulatory care component of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. Established in 1997, CPUP has more than 1500 physicians, nurses and nurse practitioners providing care at 150 practice locations across the Philadelphia region. CPUP physicians see more than 2 million outpatient visits each year.

Penn’s provider network of primary and specialty care physicians, Clinical Care Associates (CCA) and Clinical Health Care Associates of New Jersey (CCA/CHCA), includes practices with more than 50 locations throughout Philadelphia and the surrounding areas, providing primary care and specialty care services.

The Penn Medicine at Rittenhouse location is comprised of two buildings. The main building includes the post-acute care facility operated by Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a joint venture between UPHS and the Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network, and the Penn Medicine Clinical Simulation Center. The Tuttleman Center building houses The Surgery Center of Pennsylvania Hospital, as well as outpatient radiology, primary care services and the Penn Pain Medicine Center.

Penn Home Care & Hospice Services offers a full range of home health care needs. It is composed of Penn Wissahickon Hospice, Penn Care at Home, and Penn Home Infusion Therapy. The service is backed by a multidisciplinary team of UPHS professionals, is Medicare- and Medicaid-certified and accredited by the Joint Commission.

Satellite facilities provide both primary and multispecialty care to patients in the Philadelphia region.

Penn Medicine at Bucks County specialties include primary care, cardiac and lung care, orthopaedics and radiology.
Penn Medicine at Cherry Hill offers family medicine, neurosurgery, obstetrics and gynecology, as well as physical therapy and sport medicine.
Penn Medicine at Radnor is one of the largest regional practices, offering more than 40 specialty offices, including cardiology, ophthalmology, women’s health, and primary care services.
Penn Medicine at Valley Forge is the most recent addition, and includes allergy and immunology care, cardiology, diabetes and endocrinology, radiology and sports medicine practices.
Penn Medicine at Woodbury Heights is home to a large internal medicine practice and an obstetrics and gynecology practice, as well as cardiology, general surgery, and physical therapy.