Institute of Medicine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Institute of Medicine (IOM), one of the United States National Academies, is a not-for-profit, non-governmental American organization chartered in 1970 as a part of the United States National Academy of Sciences.[1] Its purpose is to provide national advice on issues relating to biomedical science, medicine, and health, and its mission to serve as adviser to the nation to improve health. It works outside the framework of the U.S. federal government to provide independent guidance and analysis and relies on a volunteer workforce of scientists and other experts, operating under a rigorous, formal peer-review system. The Institute provides unbiased, evidence-based, and authoritative information and advice concerning health and science policy to policy-makers, professionals, leaders in every sector of society, and the public at large.
The President of the IOM is Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg, M.D., Ph.D.; the Executive Officer is Dr. Judith A. Salerno, M.D., M.S.
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[edit] Operations
The Institute and The National Academies use a [2] to obtain authoritative, objective, and scientifically balanced answers to difficult questions of national importance. Their work is conducted by committees of volunteer scientists--leading national and international experts--who serve without compensation.
Committees are carefully composed to assure the requisite expertise and to avoid bias or conflict of interest. Every report produced by IOM committees undergoes extensive review and evaluation by a group of external experts who are anonymous to the committee, and whose names are revealed only once the study is published.
The majority of IOM studies and other activities are requested and funded by the federal government. Private industry, foundations, and state and local governments also initiate studies, as does the IOM itself.
The IOM works in a broad range of categories, including: mental health, child health, food & nutrition, aging, women’s health, education, public policy, healthcare & quality, diseases, global health, workplace, military & veterans, health sciences, environment, treatment, public health & prevention, and minority health.
The reports of the IOM are made available online for free by the publishing arm of the United States National Academies, the National Academies Press, in multiple formats.
[edit] Membership
The Institute of Medicine is both an honorific membership organization and a policy research organization. The Institute's members, elected on the basis of their professional achievement and commitment to service, serve without compensation in the conduct of studies and other activities on matters of significance to health. Election to active membership is both an honor and a commitment to serve in Institute affairs.
The bylaws of IOM specify that no more than 65 new members shall be elected annually. The announcement of newly elected members occurs at the IOM Annual Meeting in October. The number of regular members plus foreign associates and emeritus members is currently about 1,700.[3]
An unusual diversity of talent among Institute members is assured by the charter stipulation that at least one-quarter be selected from outside the health professions, from such fields as the natural, social, and behavioral sciences, as well as law, administration, engineering, and the humanities.
[edit] Notable members, past and present
- Dennis S. Charney, dean of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City
- Francis Collins, geneticist and leader in the Human Genome Project
- Kenneth L. Davis, author and medical researcher and President and Chief Executive Officer of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City
- Leroy Hood, winner of the 2003 Lemelson-MIT Prize[4]
- Arthur Kellermann, professor and founding chairman of the department of Emergency Medicine at Emory University
- Philip J. Landrigan, pediatrician and leading advocate of children's health
- Susan Lindquist, a molecular biologist and former Director of the Whitehead Institute
- Maclyn McCarty, youngest member of the research team responsible for the Avery-MacLeod-McCarty experiment
- Mario J. Molina, recipient of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Nicholas A. Peppas, pioneer of biomaterials and drug delivery
- Frederick Redlich, dean of the Yale School of Medicine from 1967 to 1972
- James Rothman, winner of the 2002 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research
- Jeffrey Sachs, economist and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University
- David A. Savitz, Director of the Disease Prevention and Public Health Institute at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York[5]
- Shirley M. Tilghman, president of Princeton University
- Elias Zerhouni, former executive vice-dean of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and director of the National Institutes of Health under George W. Bush
[edit] Notable Reports
The following Institute of Medicine reports have received notable interest from the media, health industry, and the general public.[6]
- The U.S. Commitment to Global Health: Recommendations for the New Administration (15 Dec 2008) offers recommendations as to how the Obama administration can improve America's standing in the global community through a commitment to global health.
- HHS in the 21st Century: Charting a New Course for a Healthier America (12 Dec 2008) recommends changes that could be made in the Department of Health and Human Services to better serve Americans' health and health care needs.
- Resident Duty Hours: Enhancing Sleep, Supervision and Safety (2 Dec 2008) recommends revised duty hours and duty requirements for medical residents in order to improve both education and patient safety.
- Retooling for an Aging America: Building the Health Care Workforce (14 Apr 2008) addresses the problems of a medical workforce inequipped to handle the growing number of seniors and offers recommendations on how to be prepared to care for the aging population.
- Knowing What Works in Health Care: A Roadmap for the Nation (24 Jan 2008) provides a blueprint for a national program to assess the effectiveness of clinical services and to provide credible, unbiased information about what really works in health care.
- The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century (11 Nov 2002) reviews the nation's public health capabilities and presents a comprehensive framework for how the government public health agencies can better assure the health of communities.
- Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century (1 Mar 2001) makes an urgent call for fundamental change to close the quality gap, recommends a redesign of the American health care system, and provides overarching principles for specific direction for policymakers, health care leaders, clinicians, regulators, purchasers, and others.
- Working Together: We Can Help People Get Good Care When They Are Dying (1 Jan 2000) summarizes the findings from the 1997 report Approaching Death: Improving Care at the End of Life for the lay reader. Approaching Death reflects a wide-ranging effort to understand what we know about care at the end of life, what we have yet to learn, and what we know but do not adequately apply.
- To Err is Human: Building A Safer Health System (1 Nov 1999) lays out a comprehensive strategy by which government, health care providers, industry, and consumers can reduce preventable medical errors.