The University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy now ranks fourth nationally among 110 pharmacy schools in funding per researcher from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The college moved up two spaces from sixth last year.
The rankings — compiled annually by the the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) — show that the College of Pharmacy’s doctoral-level investigators collectively received more than $6.6 million in NIH funds in 2009. That is a 31 percent increase in NIH funds from 2008, when the college’s researchers collectively brought in about $5 million.
UNMC also moved up to No. 16 from No. 23 in terms of total awards received by its investigators.
“This is an outstanding accomplishment," said Courtney Fletcher, Pharm.D., dean of the UNMC College of Pharmacy. “It is the result of the creativity, persistence and dedication to improving human health on the part of everyone in the college.”
The $6.6 million in 2009 also means the college has more than doubled its NIH funding since 2006, when it brought in about $3 million.
The college benefits from a system that matches the efforts of the faculty with their individual talents; an approach that allows those who are strong teachers to do the majority of instruction while strong researchers get more time for investigation, Dr. Fletcher said.
"This superb accomplishment in research funding is indeed the result of the collective contributions of the entire faculty," Dr. Fletcher said.
And with developments in the works such as plans for a potential Center for Drug Development, the research future for the college looks bright, Dr. Fletcher said.
"We have the people in place to be a leader in pharmacy research for a long time," Dr. Fletcher said.
As the state’s only academic health science center, UNMC is on the leading edge of health care. Breakthroughs are possible because hard-working researchers, educators and clinicians are resolved to work together to fuel discovery. In 2009, UNMC’s extramural research support topped $100 million for the first time, resulting in the creation of 3,600 jobs in Nebraska. UNMC’s academic excellence is shown through its award-winning programs, and its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through its commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC and its hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, have established themselves as one of the country’s leading health care centers. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes 550 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties who practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.
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