U-M Medical School
Process to Create New Departments
Computational Medicine
& Bioinformatics
Request made in fall of 2009
Cardiac Surgery
Request made in fall of 2010
2. Request reviewed by ad hoc committee
appointed by Dean and committee
recommendation made to Dean
Committee recommended
YES to create department
Committee recommended
YES to create department
3. Medical School Executive Committee
vote
Executive Committee voted
YES at 04/21/11 meeting
Executive Committee voted
YES at 05/26/11 meeting
4. Executive Faculty vote (requires
majority approval)
Will take place in July 2011
Will take place in July 2011
5. U-M Regents vote (if approved by
Executive Faculty)
Targeting Regents’
September meeting
Targeting Regents’
September meeting
Action *
1. Request to create department brought to
Dean by chair, division or section chief,
or center or program director
* In accordance with Medical School Bylaws:
http://www.med.umich.edu/medschool/faculty/pdf/Bylaws2011.pdf
Why Create New Departments?
Throughout the history of the University, it has been necessary to adapt to changes in the environment and
advances in knowledge and technology with modifications to our organizational structure. Departments are
the fundamental building blocks of the University tasked with the primary role of advancing education.
Add to this the more modern concept of the research university (post World War II), and service, which in
the case of the Medical School includes clinical care, and it should be no surprise that from time to time we
must consider forming new organizational structures to support our mission. The bylaws of the University
of Michigan and of the Medical School recognize the critical function of departments in the organization
and each outline the procedures for the creation and dissolution of these units.
The last time the faculty of the Medical School created new departments was in the period between 1999
and 2000. In 1999, the faculty created the Department of Emergency Medicine. In 2000, the faculty
created the Departments of Neurosurgery, Orthopaedic Surgery and Urology.
Why Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics?
The Center for Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics’ (CCMB) successes include the establishment
of the NIH National Center for Integrative Biomedical Informatics (now in year six and one of eight such
national centers); a highly regarded, NIH-supported interdisciplinary graduate training program in
bioinformatics; and a new NCI-funded training program in proteome informatics. CCMB has graduated 30
PhDs and more than 50 MS students in bioinformatics since its inception in 2005. It features a highly
July 2011
collaborative environment that has successfully built bridges to faculty across U-M in research and training.
It is also a home for scholarly research in bioinformatics carried out by the CCMB core faculty who
develop and apply computationally intensive techniques (such as computational protein folding, sequence
pattern recognition and biomedical literature and data mining) to advance our understanding of biological
processes, which are often medically relevant. CCMB works closely with the Michigan Institute for Clinical
& Health Research (MICHR) and leads its Biomedical Informatics Program. The Department of
Bioinformatics will be one of our basic science departments under the FAM III finance model.
Recruitment of instructional track faculty in computational medicine and bioinformatics is highly
competitive and our peer institutions are building their programs and departments. To remain competitive
and attract the emerging scholars in this field to further enhance our faculty expertise, and to maintain our
training program for the next generation of bioinformaticians, we propose the creation of the Department of
Bioinformatics. CCMB will remain as an interdisciplinary center housed within the new department,
charged with maintaining our important connections across U-M.
Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics Review Committee
 William Barsan, M.D. – Chair
 Victor DiRita, Ph.D.
 H.V. Jagadish, Ph.D.
 Matthias Kretzler, M.D.
 Harry Mobley, Ph.D.
 Kenneth Pienta, M.D.
Why Cardiac Surgery?
Cardiac Surgery continues to evolve new approaches to the spectrum of cardiac disease from congenital
abnormalities to problems of the elderly. The Section of Cardiac Surgery in the Department of Surgery has
a robust clinical program and strong participation in the education mission of the Medical School through
residency education. Its successful research program will be expanded in the areas of health outcomes
research and clinical trials with the recruitment of additional research faculty. The residency program will
soon match its own residents separately from those of general surgery.
It is anticipated that Cardiac Surgery’s transition to department status will enhance faculty recruitment,
expand the clinical footprint, grow an excellent I-6 training program with continued collaboration with the
Section of General Thoracic Surgery, grow funded research and enhance the faculty’s contributions to the
Medical School and Faculty Group Practice. The section’s financial viability will put the new department
on a solid financial foundation to meet the demands of independence.
Like the four previous departments that emerged from the Department of Surgery between 1999 and 2001
(Emergency Medicine, Neurosurgery, Orthopaedics and Urology), Cardiac Surgery has a distinct and
independent conceptual basis, an independent educational program and an independent framework for
research.
Cardiac Surgery Review Committee
 David Bloom, M.D. – Chair
 James Bell, J.D., C.P.A.
 Valerie Castle, M.D.
 John Del Valle, M.D.
July 2011
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Gerard Doherty, M.D.
Kim Eagle, M.D.
Karin Muraszko, M.D.
Bishr Omary, M.D., Ph.D.
Richard Prager, M.D.
Thomas Wakefield, M.D.
Margaret Westfall, Ph.D.
July 2011