Wilson Named AAMC Chair

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 8, 2003
Contact: Larry Roberts lroberts@som.umaryland.edu 410-706-7590
Ellen Beth Levitt eblevitt@umm.edu 410-328-8919

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF MEDICINE DEAN BECOMES CHAIR OF THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN MEDICAL COLLEGES

National Organization Represents U.S. Medical Schools, Faculty, Students and Residents

Donald E. Wilson, M.D., M.A.C.P.

Donald E. Wilson, M.D., M.A.C.P., Vice President for Medical Affairs, University of Maryland, and Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, begins his one-year tenure as chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) on November 8, 2003 at the association's 114th Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

As AAMC chair, Dr. Wilson represents the nation's 126 accredited medical schools, some 400 major teaching hospitals, and more than 70 Veterans Affairs medical centers. The AAMC also represents more than 105,000 faculty members, the nation's 66,000 medical students and 97,000 residents.

A former chair of the AAMC Council of Deans, Dr. Wilson is the first African-American dean of a predominantly non-minority medical school, as well as the first African-American dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.

Under Dr. Wilson's leadership, research funding to the School of Medicine has soared from $77 million in 1991 to $262 million last year. This year, the School of Medicine received a $42 million grant the largest grant in its history to lead a Regional Center of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Research. Today, the School of Medicine ranks fourth in research funding per clinical faculty member among all public U.S. medical schools.

Dr. Wilson has been influential in the development of health care policy at the national and state levels. He has served as chairman of several committees including the National Institute of Health Digestive Diseases Advisory Board, the Food and Drug Administration's Gastrointestinal Drugs Advisory Committee, and the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (Department of Health and Human Services) Advisory Council. He currently is a member of the Advisory Committee to the director of the NIH. At the state level, Dr. Wilson is the chairman of the Maryland Health Care Commission, which regulates and monitors the quality of health care services and HMOs.

An internationally known expert in gastroenterology and prostaglandins, Dr. Wilson has over 150 publications in the fields of internal medicine and medical education. He holds membership in numerous prestigious medical/research societies, including the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, the Association of American Physicians, and the American Clinical and Climatological Association.

Three years ago, Dr. Wilson became the first recipient of the AAMC's Herbert W. Nickens, M.D., Award. He was awarded this honor for his dedication to the principles of diversity and equity in health care. Dr. Wilson's commitment to the education of minority medical students prompted him to become a founding member of the Association of Academic Minority Physicians, a professional organization for minority physicians and scientists.

Dr. Wilson received his medical degree at Tufts University School of Medicine. After completing his residency at the Veterans Affairs medical center in Boston, he joined the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. Dr. Wilson has been dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine since 1991.

###

For patient inquiries, call 1-800-492-5538 or click here to make an appointment.

This page was last updated on: March 21, 2008.