Dr. Darrell Kirch’s keynote lecture, 5:30 p.m. this Wednesday, is hosted by USF Health

TAMPA, FL (Jan. 16, 2012) – Dr. Darrell G. Kirch, president and CEO of the Association of American Medical Colleges, will deliver a keynote lecture this Wednesday evening, Jan. 18, at USF Health. Dr. Kirch will describe the future academic medical professionals should work towards, as well as the many ways the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine is demonstrating excellence in order to reach this desired state.

“Let us judge our success not by rankings, but by how well our research and education efforts lead to the overall improvement of health, and how well we serve and meet the needs of the communities at our front doors,” Dr. Kirch said.

AAMC’s Dr. Darrell Kirch 

Dr. Kirch’s lecture is part of a three-day visit to USF Health that will include meetings with faculty and students. He will also tour The Villages, where USF Health will conduct studies to enhance the health of retirees, and preview the Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation, an innovative center designed to transform lifelong education and assessment for health professionals.

A distinguished physician, educator, and medical scientist, and a noted authority on the organization and management of academic medical centers, Dr. Kirch’s career spans all aspects of academic medicine and includes leadership positions at two medical schools and teaching hospitals, as well as at the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. Kirch assumed the position of AAMC president in July 2006 following six years as senior vice president for health affairs, dean of the college of medicine, and CEO of the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center at The Pennsylvania State University, where he and his leadership team are credited with revitalizing the institution and guiding it through a period of educational innovation and major growth in clinical activity and research funding. Before joining Penn State, Dr. Kirch served as the dean of the medical school at the Medical College of Georgia from 1994 to 2000.

As a psychiatrist and neuroscientist, Dr. Kirch conducted research on the biological basis of and clinical treatments for severe neuropsychiatric disorders. Following the completion of his residency training at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, he joined the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in Bethesda, Maryland, where he was named acting scientific director in 1993. His NIMH contributions were recognized when he was presented with the Outstanding Service Medal of the United States Public Health Service.

Founded in 1876 and based in Washington, D.C., the AAMC is a not-for-profit association representing all 136 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical schools; nearly 400 teaching hospitals and health systems, including 62 Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and nearly 90 academic and scientific societies.

Dr. Kirch’s lecture will be held on the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine campus in the Lehigh Valley Health Network Leadership Center. A reception will be held at 5 p.m. Wednesday, followed by the lecture and a Q&A session from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. To attend, register online at http://www.cme.hsc.usf.edu/

An article in the most recent AAMC Reporter touts USF as a leader in choosing medical students for the health care environment of the future.

– USF Health –

USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a global research university ranked 34th in federal research expenditures for public universities.