Major translational research initiatives at Vanderbilt University are moving discoveries from the bench to the bedside, and our scientists are working to transform both health care and health care delivery. In federal fiscal year 2014, the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine (VUSM) ranked 10th among U.S. medical schools for National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, and VUSM funding from all sources has more than doubled since 2001. In academic year 2013, faculty across all disciplines received more than $521 million in external funding for research. The Vanderbilt Department of Anesthesiology is a key contributor to the institution’s standing, as it is consistently ranked one of the top extramurally funded anesthesia research programs in the nation. In 2014, the department’s investigators brought in more than $7.4 million in total extramural research funding. This includes more than $4.2 million in awarded NIH grants in federal fiscal year 2014, which placed Vanderbilt Anesthesiology 8th among U.S. academic anesthesiology departments in NIH funding.
Edward Sherwood, MD, PhD, joined Vanderbilt’s Department of Anesthesiology faculty in July 2012 as vice-chair for Research, and he oversees all of the department’s investigational endeavors. A distinguished translational physician-scientist, Dr. Sherwood previously served as vice-chair for Research and Professor/James F. Arens Endowed Chair of the Department of Anesthesiology, as well as Director of the MD-PhD Combined Degree Program at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas.
The vision of the Research Division is to improve upon the department’s currently successful program by fostering excellence, collaboration, and the development of young investigators. The Vanderbilt Department of Anesthesiology has a strong, multifaceted approach to research.
In addition to providing a solid research infrastructure, the Department of Anesthesiology places a strong emphasis on faculty and fellow career development in academic anesthesiology. Active mentoring programs pair young and mid-level investigators with experienced scientists in both basic and clinical research. Our research productivity, as determined by publication in peer-reviewed journals, has more than doubled since 2010. In academic year 2014, faculty members published 149 papers in the peer-reviewed literature. Many of the papers were published in high impact, multi-disciplinary journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet, Physiological Reviews, and American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Our faculty members regularly publish in Pain, Anesthesiology, and Anesthesia & Analgesia. Several faculty members are members of the FAER (Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research) Academy of Research Mentors in Anesthesiology.