Yale School of Medicine
Encyclopedia
The Yale School of Medicine at Yale University
is a private
medical school
located in New Haven
, Connecticut
, U.S.
It was founded in 1810 as The Medical Institution of Yale College, and formally opened its doors in 1813.
The primary teaching hospital for the school is Yale-New Haven Hospital
. The school is home to the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library
, one of the largest modern medical libraries, also known for its historical collections. The faculty includes 25 National Academy of Sciences
members and 24 Institute of Medicine
investigators.
(M.D.) degree
and a Master of Medical Science (M.M.Sc.) degree through the Yale Physician Associate Program
for prospective physician assistant
s. Public health
degrees are administered through the Yale School of Public Health
.
There are also joint degree programs with other disciplines at Yale, including the M.D/Juris Doctor
(J.D.) in conjunction with Yale Law School
; the M.D./Master of Business Administration
(M.B.A.) in conjunction with the Yale School of Management
; the M.D./Master of Public Health
(M.P.H.) in conjunction with the Yale School of Public Health
; science
or engineering
in conjunction with the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
(M.D./Ph.D.
); and the M.D./Master of Divinity
(M.Div) in conjunction with Yale Divinity School
. Students pursuing a tuition-free fifth year of research are eligible for the Master of Health Science
degree.
The M.D. program is notable for its assessment of student achievement. In particular, the school employs the so-called "Yale System" established by Dean Winternitz in the 1920s, wherein first- and second-year students are not graded
or ranked
among their classmates. In addition, course examinations are anonymous, and are intended only for students' self-evaluation. Student performance is thus based on seminar
participation, qualifying examinations (if a student fails, it is his or her responsibility to meet with a professor and arrange for an alternative assessment - passing grades are not released), clinical clerkship evaluations, and the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). Prior to graduation
, students are required to submit a thesis based on original research. A hallmark of the Yale System is the unusual flexibility that it provides; with this flexibility comes great responsibility for the student to take an active role in directing his or her education according to individual interests.
Other key features of the Yale System include:
More graduates of the Yale School of Medicine enter medical scholarship (including Ph.D. degrees in Medicine) as professors of medicine than those graduates of other medical schools.
conceived the idea of training physicians at Yale and ultimately, his successor Timothy Dwight IV
helped to found the medical school. The school was chartered in 1810 and opened in New Haven in 1813. Nathan Smith
(medicine and surgery) and Benjamin Silliman
(pharmacology) were the first faculty members. Silliman was a professor of chemistry and taught at both Yale College and the Medical School. The other two founding faculty were Jonathan Knight
, anatomy, physiology and surgery and Eli Ives, pediatrics.
One of Yale's earliest medical graduates was Dr. Asaph Leavitt Bissell of Hanover, New Hampshire
, who graduated in 1815, a member of the school's second graduating class. Following his graduation, Dr. Bissell moved to Suffield, Connecticut
, a tobacco-farming community where his parents came from, and where he practiced as a country physician for the rest of his life. The saddlebags that Dr. Bissell carried in his practice, packed with paper packets and glass bottles, are today in the school's Medical Historical Library.
The original building (at Grove and Prospect) later became Sheffield Hall, part of the Sheffield Scientific School
(razed in 1931). In 1860, the school moved to Medical Hall on York Street, near Chapel (this building was razed in 1957). In 1925, the school moved to its current campus, neighboring the hospital. This campus includes the Sterling Hall of Medicine, Boyer Center for Molecular Medicine (1991, designed by Cesar Pelli
), Anlyan Center (2003, designed by Payette and Venturi Scott Brown) and the Amistad Building (2007, designed by Herbert Newman).
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
is a private
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
medical school
Medical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...
located in New Haven
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
It was founded in 1810 as The Medical Institution of Yale College, and formally opened its doors in 1813.
The primary teaching hospital for the school is Yale-New Haven Hospital
Yale-New Haven Hospital
Yale-New Haven Hospital , Connecticut's largest hospital with 966 beds, is located in New Haven, Connecticut.The hospital is owned and operated by the Yale New Haven Health System, Inc...
. The school is home to the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library
Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library
The Harvey Cushing and John Hay Whitney Medical Library is the central library of the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. Previously known as the Yale Medical Library, it is one of the finest modern medical libraries...
, one of the largest modern medical libraries, also known for its historical collections. The faculty includes 25 National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
members and 24 Institute of Medicine
Institute of Medicine
The Institute of Medicine is a not-for-profit, non-governmental American organization founded in 1970, under the congressional charter of the National Academy of Sciences...
investigators.
Education
The School of Medicine offers the Doctor of MedicineDoctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
(M.D.) degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
and a Master of Medical Science (M.M.Sc.) degree through the Yale Physician Associate Program
Yale Physician Associate Program
The Yale Physician Associate program accepted its first class in 1971. The mission of the program is to educate individuals to become outstanding clinicians and to foster leaders who will serve their communities and advance the physician associate profession....
for prospective physician assistant
Physician assistant
A physician assistant/associate ' is a healthcare professional trained and licensed to practice medicine with limited supervision by a physician.-General description:...
s. Public health
Public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
degrees are administered through the Yale School of Public Health
Yale School of Public Health
The Yale School of Public Health was founded in 1915 by Charles-Edward Amory Winslow and is one of the oldest public health masters programs in the United States...
.
There are also joint degree programs with other disciplines at Yale, including the M.D/Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
(J.D.) in conjunction with Yale Law School
Yale Law School
Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
; the M.D./Master of Business Administration
Master of Business Administration
The Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
(M.B.A.) in conjunction with the Yale School of Management
Yale School of Management
The Yale School of Management is the graduate business school of Yale University and is located on Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. The School offers Master of Business Administration and Ph.D. degree programs. As of January 2011, 454 students were enrolled in its MBA...
; the M.D./Master of Public Health
Master of Public Health
The Master of Public Health and the Doctor of Public Health are multi-disciplinary professional degrees awarded for studies in areas related to public health....
(M.P.H.) in conjunction with the Yale School of Public Health
Yale School of Public Health
The Yale School of Public Health was founded in 1915 by Charles-Edward Amory Winslow and is one of the oldest public health masters programs in the United States...
; science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
or engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
in conjunction with the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
The Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, founded in 1847, is one of the oldest graduate schools in the United States. It conferred the first Ph.D...
(M.D./Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
); and the M.D./Master of Divinity
Master of Divinity
In the academic study of theology, the Master of Divinity is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America...
(M.Div) in conjunction with Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
. Students pursuing a tuition-free fifth year of research are eligible for the Master of Health Science
Master of Health Science
The Master of Health Science degree is a specialized master’s degree. Depending on the department and specific area of study, the MHS degree provides opportunities for advanced study and research or prepares individuals to begin or advance their careers as public health professionals...
degree.
The M.D. program is notable for its assessment of student achievement. In particular, the school employs the so-called "Yale System" established by Dean Winternitz in the 1920s, wherein first- and second-year students are not graded
Grade (education)
Grades are standardized measurements of varying levels of comprehension within a subject area. Grades can be assigned in letters , as a range , as a number out of a possible total , as descriptors , in percentages, or, as is common in some post-secondary...
or ranked
Academic rank
This list of academic ranks identifies the hierarchical ranking structure found amongst scholars in academia, whether tenured or non-tenured. The lists below refer specifically to colleges and universities throughout the world, although other institutions of higher learning may follow a similar...
among their classmates. In addition, course examinations are anonymous, and are intended only for students' self-evaluation. Student performance is thus based on seminar
Seminar
Seminar is, generally, a form of academic instruction, either at an academic institution or offered by a commercial or professional organization. It has the function of bringing together small groups for recurring meetings, focusing each time on some particular subject, in which everyone present is...
participation, qualifying examinations (if a student fails, it is his or her responsibility to meet with a professor and arrange for an alternative assessment - passing grades are not released), clinical clerkship evaluations, and the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE). Prior to graduation
Graduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...
, students are required to submit a thesis based on original research. A hallmark of the Yale System is the unusual flexibility that it provides; with this flexibility comes great responsibility for the student to take an active role in directing his or her education according to individual interests.
Other key features of the Yale System include:
- commentary-based feedback from small group leaders
- an integrated Molecules to Systems course that includes Biochemistry, Physiology, and Cell Biology and the corresponding small group conferences (Biochemistry Conference, Physiology Case Conference, Histology Lab)
- early clinical exposure through the two-year Pre-Clinical Clerkship (PCC) course, in which students (in groups of 4) are assigned a physician mentor with whom they will learn the History and Physical Examination
- a surgery-based Human Anatomy course that focuses on teaching the principles of anatomy through case-based dissections involving surgical procedures rather than rote memorization
- a comprehensive student teaching program (Students Helping Students) in which second-year students review key concepts during optional evening sessions several times each week
- the opportunity to take electives that include advanced cell biology and neuroscience, global health, translational research, or any topic being taught through graduate or undergraduate programs at the University
More graduates of the Yale School of Medicine enter medical scholarship (including Ph.D. degrees in Medicine) as professors of medicine than those graduates of other medical schools.
History
In 18th century United States, credentials were not needed to practice medicine. Prior to the founding of the medical school, Yale graduates would train through an apprenticeship in order to become physicians. Yale president Ezra StilesEzra Stiles
Ezra Stiles was an American academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian and author. He was president of Yale College .-Early life:...
conceived the idea of training physicians at Yale and ultimately, his successor Timothy Dwight IV
Timothy Dwight IV
Timothy Dwight was an American academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian, and author...
helped to found the medical school. The school was chartered in 1810 and opened in New Haven in 1813. Nathan Smith
Nathan Smith (physician)
Nathan Smith was one of New England’s best-known and respected physicians. He was a skilled surgeon, teacher, writer, and practitioner...
(medicine and surgery) and Benjamin Silliman
Benjamin Silliman
Benjamin Silliman was an American chemist, one of the first American professors of science , and the first to distill petroleum.-Early life:...
(pharmacology) were the first faculty members. Silliman was a professor of chemistry and taught at both Yale College and the Medical School. The other two founding faculty were Jonathan Knight
Jonathan Knight
Jonathan Rashleigh Knight is an American singer. Knight is part of the boyband New Kids on the Block. The band also includes Donnie Wahlberg, Joey McIntyre, Danny Wood and Jonathan's younger brother Jordan...
, anatomy, physiology and surgery and Eli Ives, pediatrics.
One of Yale's earliest medical graduates was Dr. Asaph Leavitt Bissell of Hanover, New Hampshire
Hanover, New Hampshire
Hanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2010 census. CNN and Money magazine rated Hanover the sixth best place to live in America in 2011, and the second best in 2007....
, who graduated in 1815, a member of the school's second graduating class. Following his graduation, Dr. Bissell moved to Suffield, Connecticut
Suffield, Connecticut
Suffield is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. It had once been within the boundaries of Massachusetts. The town is located in the Connecticut River Valley with the town of Enfield neighboring to the east. In 1900, 3,521 people lived in Suffield; and in 1910, 3,841. As of the...
, a tobacco-farming community where his parents came from, and where he practiced as a country physician for the rest of his life. The saddlebags that Dr. Bissell carried in his practice, packed with paper packets and glass bottles, are today in the school's Medical Historical Library.
The original building (at Grove and Prospect) later became Sheffield Hall, part of the Sheffield Scientific School
Sheffield Scientific School
Sheffield Scientific School was founded in 1847 as a school of Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut for instruction in science and engineering. Originally named the Yale Scientific School, it was renamed in 1861 in honor of Joseph E. Sheffield, the railroad executive. The school was...
(razed in 1931). In 1860, the school moved to Medical Hall on York Street, near Chapel (this building was razed in 1957). In 1925, the school moved to its current campus, neighboring the hospital. This campus includes the Sterling Hall of Medicine, Boyer Center for Molecular Medicine (1991, designed by Cesar Pelli
César Pelli
César Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...
), Anlyan Center (2003, designed by Payette and Venturi Scott Brown) and the Amistad Building (2007, designed by Herbert Newman).
Deans
Before 1845, there was no dean. Nathan Smith, followed by Jonathan Knight, provided leadership in the early years.- Charles Hooker (1845–1863), Professor of Anatomy and Physiology. His practice included surgery, obstetrics, and practical medicine.
- Charles Augustus Lindsley (1863–1885), Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics; later of the Theory and Practice of Medicine.
- Herbert Eugene Smith (1885–1910), physician and chemist
- George Blumer (1910–1920)
- Milton Winternitz (1920–1935), pathologist
- Stanhope Bayne-Jones (1935–1940), physician and bacteriologist
- Francis Gilman Blake (1940–1947)
- Cyril Norman Hugh LongCyril Norman Hugh LongCyril Norman Hugh Long was an English-American biochemist and academic administrator. He was Sterling Professor of physiological chemistry at Yale University for 31 years during the middle part of the 20th century....
(1947–1952), physician and biochemistBiochemistBiochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. Typical biochemists study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. The prefix of "bio" in "biochemist" can be understood as a fusion of "biological chemist."-Role:... - Vernon W. Lippard (1952–1967)
- Frederick Carl Redlich (1967–1972), psychiatristPsychiatristA psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
- Lewis ThomasLewis ThomasLewis Thomas was a physician, poet, etymologist, essayist, administrator, educator, policy advisor, and researcher.Thomas was born in Flushing, New York and attended Princeton University and Harvard Medical School...
(1972–1973), physician and author - Robert Berliner (1973–1984)
- Leon Rosenberg (1984–1991)
- Robert M. Donaldson (acting) (1991–1992)
- Gerard N. Burrow (1992–1997)
- David Aaron KesslerDavid Aaron KesslerDavid Aaron Kessler is an American pediatrician, lawyer, author, and administrator...
(1997–2003), pediatrician, lawyer and former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration - Dennis Spencer (acting) (2003–2004), neurosurgeon
- Robert Alpern (2004—), nephrologist.
Notable faculty
- Harvey CushingHarvey CushingHarvey Williams Cushing, M.D. , was an American neurosurgeon and a pioneer of brain surgery, and the first to describe Cushing's syndrome...
- Russell Henry ChittendenRussell Henry ChittendenRussell Henry Chittenden was an American physiological chemist. He conducted pioneering research in the biochemistry of digestion and nutrition....
- Stephen FleckStephen FleckStephen Fleck was a professor in the Psychiatry and Epidemiology and Public Health Departments at the Yale University School of Medicine from 1953 to 1983 and professor emeritus from 1983 until his death....
- Patricia Goldman-Rakic
- Arnold GesellArnold Gesell-External links:* Gesell's ; *...
- Dorothy Horstmann, epidemiologist, virologist, pioneer in the study of polio and the first woman appointed as a professor at the school.
- Arthur L. HorwichArthur L. HorwichArthur L. Horwich is an American biologist and Eugene Higgins Professor of Genetics and Pediatrics at Yale School of Medicine. Horwich has also been a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator since 1990. His research into protein folding uncovered the action of chaperonins, protein complexes...
- Samuel C. Harvey (1886–1953), Assistant Professor of Surgery (1920–1921), Associate Professor and acting Chairman of the Surgical Department (1921–1924), Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Chief Surgeon of Yale-New Haven Hospital (1924–1947), Full Professor (1924–1950), Editor of the Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine (1950–1953).
- Orvan HessOrvan HessOrvan Walter Hess was a physician noted for his early use of penicillin and the development of the fetal heart monitor....
- Theodore LidzTheodore LidzTheodore Lidz was an American psychiatrist best known for his articles and books on the causes of schizophrenia and on psychotherapy with schizophrenic patients...
- Lafayette MendelLafayette MendelLafayette Benedict Mendel was an American biochemist known for his work in nutrition including the study of Vitamin A, Vitamin B, lysine and tryptophan....
- William PrusoffWilliam PrusoffWilliam Herman Prusoff was a pharmacologist who was an early innovator in antiviral drugs, developing idoxuridine, the first antiviral agent approved by the FDA, in the 1950s, and co-developing stavudine, one of the earliest AIDS drugs, in the mid-1980s.-References:...
, discovered idoxuridineIdoxuridineIdoxuridine is an anti-herpesvirus antiviral drug.It is a nucleoside analogue, a modified form of deoxyuridine, similar enough to be incorporated into viral DNA replication, but the iodine atom added to the uracil component blocks base pairing. It is used only topically due to...
, the first antiviral agent approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and discovered the anti-HIVHIVHuman immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
effect of stavudineStavudineStavudine is a nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor active against HIV.-History:...
(D4T). - Juan RosaiJuan RosaiJuan Rosai, M.D. is an Italian-born American physician who has contributed to clinical research in the subspecialty of surgical pathology. He is the principal author and editor of a major textbook in that field, and he has characterized novel medical conditions such as Rosai-Dorfman disease and...
, professor of pathology and Director of the Department of Anatomic Pathology at Yale University School of Medicine between 1985 and 1991. Author and editor of a main textbook in surgical pathologySurgical pathologySurgical pathology is the most significant and time-consuming area of practice for most anatomical pathologists. Surgical pathology involves the gross and microscopic examination of surgical specimens, as well as biopsies submitted by non-surgeons such as general internists, medical subspecialists,...
and discoverer of several entities such as Rosai-Dorfman diseaseRosai-Dorfman diseaseRosai–Dorfman disease, also known as sinus histiocytosis with massive lymphadenopathy, is a rare disorder of unknown etiology that is characterized by the overproduction of histiocytes, which accumulate in lymph nodes throughout the body. Lymphadenopathy of the neck is the most common place of...
and Desmoplastic small round cell tumorDesmoplastic small round cell tumorDesmoplastic small-round-cell tumor is classified as a soft tissue sarcoma. It is an aggressive and rare tumor that primarily occurs as masses in the abdomen. Other areas affected may include the lymph nodes, the lining of the abdomen, diaphragm, spleen, liver, chest wall, skull, spinal cord, large... - Lisa SandersLisa SandersLisa Sanders is an American physician, medical author and journalist.She is a graduate of the College of William & Mary and is part of the Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine....
, The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Diagnosis columnist - Gretchen Berland Gretchen BerlandGretchen Kimberly Berland is an American physician and filmmaker, and Associate Professor of Medicine at the Yale School of Medicine.She graduated from Pomona College with a BA in 1986, and Oregon Health & Sciences University, with a M.D., in 1996. She was a Fellow in the UCLA Robert Wood Johnson...
- Nathan SmithNathan Smith (physician)Nathan Smith was one of New England’s best-known and respected physicians. He was a skilled surgeon, teacher, writer, and practitioner...
- Frans J. Th. Wackers, nuclear cardiologist
- James D. JamiesonJames D. JamiesonJames D. Jamieson is a cell biologist and professor at Yale University. His early research in cell biology of pancreatic acinar cells in the lab of George Palade established the function of the Golgi apparatus in secretory protein trafficking....
See also
- List of Yale University people
- Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine (YJBM)
- Ivy League medical schools