Dr. Lisa Staiano-Coico (center), senior associate dean for research, with the visitors from Sweden touring the Whitney Pavilion Research Laboratories.
Weill Cornell and the Hospital were host to a delegation of visitors from Sweden's renowned Karolinska Institute and the Stockholm County Council on Feb. 9. The visitors were welcomed by Dr. Lisa Staiano-Coico, senior associate dean for research, and heard presentations by Dr. John Moore, professor of microbiology and immunology, on research on HIV/AIDS; Dr. Carol Storey-Johnson, senior associate dean for education, on the educational curriculum; and Dr. Steven Goldman, professor of neurology and neuroscience, on the growth of new neurons in the adult brain. The visitors toured the Weill Education Center and the Whitney Pavilion Research Laboratories before having lunch in the Griffis Faculty Club.
After lunch, the group met with Hospital president Dr. Herbert Pardes and other Hospital staff. Dr. Pardes spoke about the merger of the two hospitals. Dr. Michael Berman, executive vice president and Hospital director, introduced several speakers who made presentations. Dr. Claudia Henschke, professor of radiology, discussed ELCAP (the Early Lung Cancer Action Project) and CT screening for lung cancer. Dr. Nasser Altorki, professor of cardiothoracic surgery, spoke about heart surgery. Dr. William Polf, Hospital senior vice president for external relations, discussed government relations and health-care public policy. Dr. Mehmet Oz, a heart surgeon at Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons, spoke about the left ventricular assist device (LVAD). And Josephine Sallano, director of the Hospital's Institute for Clinical Excellence, spoke about methods to reduce medical errors.
During their visit to the U.S., the Swedish delegation also visited the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.