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Excerpt
The first GW medical department was funded by its faculty and the first facility was built in downtown Washington near Ford's Theatre. The distinguished faculty included Thomas Sewall, professor of anatomy, and James Staughton, professor of surgery.
By 1844, the department had outgrown its facility, so Congress designated the Judiciary Square jail space as the Washington Infirmary to be operated by GW. This was the first incarnation of GW Hospital, the only hospital in the nation's capital at the time, and one of the earliest teaching hospitals. In 1948, the Foggy Bottom district became the new home for the hospital.
In 2002, the hospital moved to a brand new $96 million facility across the street. There, the new Clinical Learning and Simulation Skills (CLASS) center was opened which features full-scale mock operating rooms with highly sophisticated computer-controlled mannequins. CLASS also features 12 exam rooms that are fully wired for sound and video, so interactions with so-called “standardized patients” can be observed, recorded, and stored in a completely digital environment.
Emergency medicine and disaster preparedness have become hallmarks of GW Medical center's mission. The treatment of President Ronald Reagan following a 1981 assassination attempt was perhaps the most high profile crisis the Medical Center endured. Located just blocks from the White House, GW Medical Center has continued to see its share of major events: Vice President Cheney has made several visits to GW Medical Center for heart troubles; the Medical Center's proximity to the Pentagon made it the destination for ambulances from the scene of the September 11, 2001 disaster; a month later, the Medical Center screened more than 700 people for anthrax. Recently, GW also launched the Response to Emergencies and Disasters Institute (READI), designed to provide emergency training to fire, EMS, and police officials, as well as to public health authorities and other nontraditional first responders.
When the medical department opened in 1825, Dr. Sewell ventured a prediction that GW would be instrumental in creating a “new era” in the science of medicine. Through its many accomplishments it appears The George Washington University Medical Center has already made good on that prediction and the promise for the future is bright.
For more information about The George Washington University Medical Center, go to 〈http://www.gwumc.edu〉.
