- John Votaw, PhD Vice Chair for Research
Research in the Department of Radiology is highly integrated with clinical practice and teaching. This activity is spread across three main categories, Clinical Research with eight clinical sections , Translational and Basic Research with six sections and Affiliated labs that includes the Center for Systems Imaging, PET Center Core, and the Biomedical imaging Technology Center in collaboration with the Department of Biomedical Engineering. The scientific disciplines include radiopharmaceutical chemistry, molecular imaging, cardiovascular imaging, physics and computing, magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy, and medical physics and engineering.
The Department of Radiology at Emory is known worldwide for its scientific accomplishments and strong leadership in translational and basic research including nuclear cardiology, radiopharmaceutical discovery, breast imaging, and functional MRI.
Congratulations to our entire hard-working faculty. It is a fact of modern medically oriented academic centers that the full research effort cannot be completely funded by research grants and contracts. We could not perform quality studies and attract top talent from around the country without a very strong clinical program. In addition to providing financial support, the clinical effort gives purpose to the research effort by identifying critical questions and keeping us centered on improving health care. All of the faculty and staff should share in the pride of achieving the top 20 in NIH funding.
Our five-year strategic plan to reach the top 20 in NIH funding was put in place in 2007. The plan recommended attracting new researchers and concentrating on larger grants. We have been very successful in both areas. Our junior faculty are very energetic.
I have seen projects full of exciting new ideas from investigators with the enthusiasm to see that they come to fruition. Our senior faculty have been successful in obtaining large program grants. We are one of only eight facilities in the country to obtain an In-vivo Cellular and Molecular Imaging Center (ICMIC) award. This is a prestigious five-year award that provides support of basic and transitional science and for our core services that benefit all researchers. The effort of the strategic planning process is bearing fruit, yet our orchard is very young. We reached our five-year goal in only three years and are well positioned to continue our ascent up the charts.
At his State-of-the-School of Medicine Report, Dean Lawley was very proud of the SOM growth in research - both NIH funded and that funded by foundations and industry. Approximately 25% of the extramural funds for radiology research are from contracts. This source of revenue and the projects that it supports are vital to our growth. The projects are generally tools that are used by clinicians and researchers to either directly impact diagnosis or to permit new measurements to be made that further elucidate human physiology. These advances are facilitated by multi-disciplinary collaboration. Radiology research benefits from being in an academic environment where research of all types is encouraged and highly valued.
One of the greatest pleasures of being Vice Chair for Research is the opportunity to talk to interested researchers about their studies. If you have an idea for a research project, or wish you knew the answer to a question of medical significance, please do not hesitate to contact me. The goal of the Office of Radiology Research is to help you answer questions and thereby continue our march into the top 10 in NIH ranking. My staff and I will help you flesh out your idea, develop experiments, prepare funding applications, critically review them, and assist in making sure the studies are performed efficiently and well. I very much look forward to working with you in the years to come.
Congratulations to all!
- John Votaw, PhD,
Vice Chair for Research
