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In This Issue:
The Impact of Eugene Braunwald, MD
On Monday, November 19, BWH chiefs of service, hospital administrators and many other colleagues, friends and family of Eugene Braunwald, MD gathered in the Benjamin Waterhouse Room at Harvard Medical School (HMS) to celebrate the renaming of the Longwood Medical Research Center (LMRC) to the Eugene Braunwald Research Center. The LMRC—a 100,000 square-foot building, located at 221 Longwood Avenue—first opened on July 10, 1991.
The event’s program included remarks from a handful of Braunwald’s colleagues as they paid tribute to the legacy he created at BWH. Braunwald’s successor as chair of the Department of Medicine Victor Dzau, MD spoke highly of his predecessor, stating “When I took over for Gene in 1996, I knew I had my job cut out for me….His impact at BWH is lasting and has opened up countless opportunities for young scientists to pursue.” Dzau, like many other leading researchers and clinicians in cardiology, trained under Braunwald at BWH.
After BWH President Jeff Otten was joined at the podium by three of Braunwald’s seven grandchildren, the plaque marking the naming of the Eugene Braunwald Research Center was revealed. A quote from Braunwald in 1998 appears beneath his portrait on the plaque: “We live in the most exciting period in the history of medicine and biomedical science. It is a challenge to attempt to influence the field in a positive way, and a privilege to have the chance to try to do so.”
Braunwald’s response to the plaque and kind remarks from his colleagues at the event was heartfelt. He commended the commitment to research on behalf of BWH and HMS and praised BWH’s Research Council for their endless pursuit of identifying and executing interdepartmental research collaborations. After thanking his former teachers and mentors who helped to spark his interest in the circulatory system and ultimately his successful career path in academic medicine, Braunwald concluded, “Thank you for this extraordinary honor.”