Talk about impact.
Visitors from around the country stopped by the Weill Cornell booth to learn more about WCMC's international initiatives.
At the annual meeting of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) November 2-7 in Washington, D.C., Weill Cornell Medical College sported a 50'-long, 12'-high display booth that caught the eye of some 4,000 meeting attendees, many of whom stopped by the booth to speak with WCMC representatives about the Medical College and our international programs.
The AAMC's annual meeting is a time for medical college administrators from around the country (and, in our case, around the world) to get together and share ideas for furthering the mission of excellence in medical education. Weill Cornell, working together with Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, developed a panoramic booth that spoke to the strength of the unique relationship of two Ivy League medical schools and the #6 hospital in the country. The quality of our education, our clinical training and our ever-expanding international reach, were the topics that made the Weill Cornell display booth a "must see." Some attendees even commented that the booth helped to clarify the connections between the three institutions.
Weill Cornell was well-represented by a team of speakers which included Dr. Bruce Ballard, Carl Brown, Dr. Rita Charon, Larry Schafer, Hilary Schmidt and Dr. Carol Storey-Johnson.
In addition to the New York crew from Weill Cornell and Columbia, several administrators from the Qatar location were also present to answer questions about their program, including WCMC-Q Dean Dr. Daniel Alonso, Associate Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs Dr. Maya Hammoud, and Mary Anne Baker. The Qatar representatives spoke proudly about the upcoming 2008 commencement for their first graduating class.
Eric Fry, director of the Office of Student Affairs in Qatar, speaks with a visitor in front of the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital section of the display booth.
Questions from meeting attendees ranged from "What's your affiliation with NewYork-Presbyterian?" to "Is it really that hot in Qatar?" All visitors left the booth with a complimentary Weill Cornell notepad and a NewYork-Presbyterian hand-sanitizing pen, which proved to be the hit of the event.
A senior executive from another prestigious medical school summed things up by saying, "You folks from Weill Cornell really know how to make an impression. Congratulations."
Dr. Maya Hammoud (left), associate dean for admissions and student affairs at WCMC-Q, and Dr. Carol Storey-Johnson, senior associate dean of education at WCMC-NY.
Lee Askin, director of admissions in Qatar, was on hand at the AAMC meeting to answer questions about the unique Qatar program and its relationship to New York.