Dean’s Significant Conversations I

Add to Calendar: Add to Calendar 2026-10-14 17:00:00 2026-10-14 20:00:00 Dean’s Significant Conversations I Dean Stanton Gerson invites you to engage in the Significant Conversations series, returning for the 2026–2027 Academic year as a four-part series. The overarching theme will be the future of academic medicine and CWRU’s place in that future. Our first conversation (Oct. 14) will focus on the current crisis in academic medicine, with subsequent conversations on medical education and clinical practice (Nov. 11), research and discovery (March 24), and reimagining and claiming our future (April 28). Sessions will be in the Wolstein Research Building Auditorium (1413) on Wednesdays, 5–6:30 p.m., followed by a reception, with a Zoom option available for those who cannot attend in person.There seems to be little disagreement that “academic medicine” is in crisis, with many, including The BMJ Commission on the Future of Academic Medicine and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), characterizing the crisis as existential. This crisis stems from severe structural strains on its core threefold mission: training future doctors, conducting scientific research, and providing complex patient care. These strains range from financial and regulatory issues (e.g., federal disinvestment in science, narrowing margins for teaching hospitals, and economic burdens for students) to workforce challenges (e.g., unsustainable teaching and research expectations, plummeting MD-PhD graduates and fewer students entering the basic sciences, and burnout for clinical faculty due to the ever-increasing demands for clinical productivity).Given the current environment, where do we (Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine) stand, what are our current excellences, and what might those tell us about the way forward not just in responding to crises but in creating and shaping our future?Program:5–5:30: Defining “Academic Medicine,” Responding to Current Challenges and Highlighting Our Local Excellences (Stan Gerson)5:30–6: Panel Discussion (Panelists: Stan Gerson, Mark Jackson, Lia Logio, Grace McComsey, and William Schiemann)6–6:30: Open Conversation with the Panelists on Shaping Our Future6:30–8: Reception Hybrid Weatherhead School of Management Weatherhead School of Management UTC public