SUNY Downstate Medical Center is the only academic medical center in Brooklyn, New York City. The Medical Center, which was once known as the State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn, dates back to 1860, when a new school of medicine was established at the Long Island College Hospital. Today the Medical Center is composed of a College of Medicine, College of Health Related Professions, College of Nursing, School of Graduate Studies and University Hospital of Brooklyn. Nobel Prize winner Dr. Robert Furchgott has been a member of the School of Graduate Studies faculty since 1956.
Educational Excellence
- First hospital-based medical school in the United States (founded in 1860).
- First hospital-based nurse-midwifery training program in the country; first bachelor's degree program in medical sonography.
- Ranks sixth nationally in the number of alumni who are on the faculty of American medical schools.
- Of the nearly 21,000 physicians practicing in New York City, more graduated from SUNY Downstate than from any other medical school.
Regional Economic Impact
- Fifth largest employer in Brooklyn.
- Eighty-five percent of employees are New York City residents; 62 percent live in Brooklyn.
- Total direct, indirect, and induced economic impact on New York State is in excess of $627 million.
- For every $1 the state invests, SUNY Downstate returns more than $12 to the economy.
- Addition to lifetime earning power for each nursing and allied health graduate ranges from $288,000 to $925,000.
- Attracted $33.7 million in external research funding in 1998/99, including $24 million from federal sources.
Milestones in Research
- 1998: Dr. Robert Furchgott, distinguished professor emeritus of pharmacology, is awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his research on nitric oxide.
- 1986: SUNY Downstate conducts first federally funded study of HIV's transmission from mother to fetus.
- 1984: Henri Begleiter, Ph.D., publishes landmark study showing that the children of alcoholics may have a greater risk for alcoholism.
- 1977: Raymond Damadian, M.D., produces first human images using magnetic resonance imaging.
- 1964: Eli Friedman, M.D., establishes nation's first federally funded dialysis program at University Hospital of Brooklyn.
Kings County Hospital Center
1955: Clarence Dennis, M.D., inventor of the heart-lung machine, performs first successful open heart surgery in New York State.
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