Faculty member, two alumnae, named to Institute of Medicine
Election considered one of highest honors in fields of medicine, health
November 2, 2004 | For more information: George Stamatis 216-368-3635
 Three physicians with ties to Case Western Reserve University (Case) School of Medicine have been elected to membership in the prestigious Institute of Medicine. Faculty member Eric J. Topol, M.D., and School of Medicine alumnae Julie L. Gerberding, M.D., and Helen H. Hobbs, M.D., are among 65 new members announced Oct. 18.
Topol is chief academic officer and chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and a professor of medicine for the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. He becomes the 10th Case medical school faculty member currently in the Institute of Medicine (see below for complete list).
 Gerberding, a 1981 graduate of the Case School of Medicine, became the first woman to be named director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, in 2002.
 Hobbs, a 1979 graduate of the Case School of Medicine, is a professor of internal medicine and molecular genetics, director of the division of medical genetics, director of the McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development, and a Howard Hughes investigator at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas.
Gerberding and Hobbs join other previously named alumni members of the IOM. Topol joins other Case faculty members elected to the IOM:
- James M. Anderson, M.D., Ph.D., professor of pathology and 1976 School of Medicine alumnus (elected in 2003);
- Richard Hanson, Ph.D., the Leonard and Jean Skeggs Professor of Biochemistry (1987);
- Ralph I. Horwitz, M.D., vice president for medical affairs, dean of the School of Medicine, and professor of medicine (1997);
- Edgar Jackson, Jr., M.D., clinical professor of medicine and 1966 School of Medicine alumnus (1991);
- Jack Medalie, M.D., the Dorothy Jones Weatherhead Professor Emeritus of Medicine in the Department of Family Medicine (1979);
- Duncan Neuhauser, Ph.D., the Charles Elton Blanchard Professor of Health Management (1983);
- Kurt C. Stange, M.D., Ph.D., the Gertrude Donnelly Hess Professor of Oncology Research (1999); and
- George R. Stark, Ph.D., professor of genetics (2002).
“Members are elected through a highly selective process that recognizes people who have made major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, health care, and public health,” said IOM President Harvey V. Fineberg. “Election is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of medicine and health.”
Current active members elect new members from among candidates nominated for their professional achievement and commitment to service. With today’s announcement, IOM membership now stands at 1,416.
Established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences, the IOM has become recognized as a national resource for independent, scientifically informed analysis and recommendations on issues related to human health. With their election, members make a commitment to devote a significant amount of volunteer time as members of IOM committees, which engage in a broad range of studies on health policy issues.
Studies from the IOM completed in the past year include: Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance, offering a comprehensive strategy for curbing rising number of overweight and obese children; Saving Women’s Lives: Strategies for Improving Breast Cancer Detection and Diagnosis, a report that examines which approaches hold the most promising for improving detection and diagnosis and calls for improving access to mammography; Damp Indoor Spaces and Health, which found associations between certain respiratory problems and exposure to damp or moldy indoor environments; Health Literacy: A Prescription to End Confusion, which recommends ways to improve people’s ability to understand and use health information; and Insuring America’s Health: Principles and Recommendations, the final report of a series dealing with the uninsured, which calls on the president and Congress to achieve universal health coverage in the United States by 2010.
About Case Western Reserve University
Case is among the nation's leading research institutions. Founded in 1826
and shaped by the unique merger of the Case Institute of Technology and Western
Reserve University, Case is distinguished by its strengths in education, research,
service, and experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case offers nationally
recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering,
Law, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work. http://www.case.edu.
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