The Power of Research
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n this issue of UMDNJ Magazine we will share powerful examples of the interface between health education and scientific discovery — a unique attribute of a great health research university like the University of Medicine and Dentistry of NJ (UMDNJ). A key mission of an academic health center is to prepare the next generation of health providers by training these talented and passionate individuals to care for the ill, as well as to discover novel therapies to prevent and treat patients’ health woes. It is the latter tasks that are the focus of our faculty and students and that are presented to you here.
You will meet an extraordinary group of graduate students at UMDNJ’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; their accomplishments are mirrored across UMDNJ’s five major campuses in New Jersey. And the linked goals of scientific discovery and health education are present across all of our eight schools.
Although UMDNJ does not define itself by research and scientific discovery alone, they are important components of how we view ourselves and measure our contributions to the citizens of our State. Obviously, skilled health care providers like those who make up our faculty must be armed with the latest therapeutic breakthroughs. Many discoveries are made at UMDNJ. But there are other important but less obvious benefits of UMDNJ’s research to our citizens. For example, most of the funding to conduct our research comes from agencies and organizations outside of New Jersey. And in this way, our research initiatives contribute to the development of the state’s economy. In turn, our research is inspired, driven, and executed by talented New Jerseyans and so generates knowledge-based jobs.
As you read each of the stories of discovery, I hope that you feel the excitement and passion that pervades UMDNJ’s unique research activities. In this way, you will come to better understand how this statewide asset called UMDNJ means a healthy New Jersey.
Sincerely,
William F. Owen, Jr., MD
President of UMDNJ