National Leader in Evidence-Based Medicine
NEW YORK (Aug. 18, 2008) — A noted proponent of evidence-based medicine, Dr. Brendan M. Reilly has been appointed executive vice chair for clinical affairs in the Department of Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Weill Cornell Medical College.
Previously, he served as chairman of the Department of Medicine and physician-in-chief of Cook County Hospital, and as the C. Anderson Hedberg Endowed Chair in Medicine at Rush University Medical College — both in Chicago.
Dr. Reilly is an alumnus of Weill Cornell Medical College.
In his new position, Dr. Reilly, who will also be appointed professor of medicine, will report to Dr. Andrew I. Schafer, chairman of the Department of Medicine and physician-in-chief to provide operational and strategic leadership for the Department's clinical activities within its 13 clinical divisions and two centers — the Iris Cantor Women's Health Center and Weill Cornell Internal Medical Associates. He will also oversee the Department's growing hospitalist program, which focuses on care for inpatients.
Dr. Reilly is featured in Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling book "Blink," for his innovative implementation of evidence-based criteria for expediting the diagnosis of heart attacks in patients complaining of chest pain. The four-step algorithm, originally developed by Dr. Lee Goldman, now dean of Columbia University Medical Center, was put into action by Dr. Reilly at Cook County Hospital, eventually leading to a 70-percent improvement in the ability to identify heart-attack patients.
"I am very pleased to welcome Dr. Reilly, an exceptional physician, educator, and leader, who will help us achieve ever higher standards of patient care," says Dr. Andrew I. Schafer, chairman and the E. Hugh Luckey Distinguished Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College and physician-in-chief at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
"I look forward to working closely with Dr. Schafer and everyone at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell. One of our priorities will be to encourage clinical collaborations between Divisions, as well as with other Departments and institutions," adds Dr. Reilly.
Dr. Reilly received his medical degree in 1973 from Weill Cornell Medical College (formerly Cornell University Medical College) and completed his residency training at Dartmouth, where he served as chief medical resident. He subsequently was named chief of the Division of General Internal Medicine and served on the Board of Governors of the Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinic until 1989. He then moved to the University of Rochester to become professor of medicine, chair of the Department of Medicine at St. Mary's Hospital, and founder and director of Rochester HealthReach. In 1995, he was appointed to lead the Department of Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago.
He is a member of several professional organizations, including the Association of Professors of Medicine, the American College of Physicians, Society of General Internal Medicine and the National Association of Public Hospitals. He has received numerous honors, including the New York State Community Health Improvement Award of the Health Care Association of New York (1997) and multiple teaching awards in Chicago, Rochester and Dartmouth.
A New York City native, Dr. Reilly and his wife, Janice, are moving from Chicago to live in the City. They have two children.
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, located in New York City, is one of the leading academic medical centers in the world, comprising the teaching hospital NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medical College, the medical school of Cornell University. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell provides state-of-the-art inpatient, ambulatory and preventive care in all areas of medicine, and is committed to excellence in patient care, education, research and community service. Weill Cornell physician-scientists have been responsible for many medical advances — from the development of the Pap test for cervical cancer to the synthesis of penicillin, the first successful embryo-biopsy pregnancy and birth in the U.S., the first clinical trial for gene therapy for Parkinson's disease, the first indication of bone marrow's critical role in tumor growth, and, most recently, the world's first successful use of deep brain stimulation to treat a minimally-conscious brain-injured patient. NewYork-Presbyterian, which is ranked sixth on the U.S.News & World Report list of top hospitals, also comprises NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Westchester Division and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/The Allen Pavilion. In its commitment to global health and education, Weill Cornell has a strong presence in places such as Qatar, Tanzania, Haiti, Brazil, Austria and Turkey. Through the historic Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Cornell University is the first in the U.S. to offer a M.D. degree overseas. For more information, visit www.nyp.org and www.med.cornell.edu.
Lezlie Greenberg
leg2003@med.cornell.edu