My first year as Einstein’s dean has educated and invigorated me. When I walked on stage for this year’s Commencement, I felt tremendous pride for our graduates, the first to receive diplomas carrying the Einstein seal. This milestone fittingly occurred on the 60th anniversary of our initial graduating class.
Our newest graduates are the best of the best, taught by a faculty doing outstanding work. A prime example is given in our cover story, “The Search for Autism Therapies.” It describes the research of Eric Hollander, M.D., a national leader in seeking new treatments for autism spectrum disorders, which affect 6,000 children in the Bronx and another 12 million nationwide. There are shockingly few treatments for autism symptoms, which include an impaired ability to communicate and form social relationships. Dr. Hollander directs the Autism and Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Program at Einstein and Montefiore, and he and his team are evaluating promising therapies.
Another example of our outstanding research is a decade-long partnership to develop better treatments for bone-marrow and blood diseases that currently have low survival rates. The article “Collaborating to Cure Cancers” describes the efforts of Amit Verma, M.B.B.S., and Ulrich Steidl, M.D., Ph.D., to cure myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia by finding their root causes.
Our students are doing some great things as well. This year the student-run Einstein Community Health Outreach free clinic marks 20 years of service to Bronx residents who lack health insurance. And one of our May graduates, Jennifer Ma, M.D., was part of a select group that experienced the life of a flight surgeon during her month in NASA’s Aerospace Medicine Clerkship program.
These are exciting times to be in science and medicine, and I’m looking forward to another dynamic and productive year.
Gordon F. Tomaselli, M.D.
The Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Executive Vice President, Chief Academic Officer
Montefiore Medicine
