For Release: June 29, 2007
Contact: Deborah Kimbell, 603-653-0887 or (802-236-6934 cell)

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Dr. James N. Weinstein Named Director of the Center for Evaluative Clinical Sciences at Dartmouth

Dr. James N. Weinstein
Dr. James N. Weinstein

Hanover, NH—The leadership of Dartmouth College and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center announced today that Dr. James N. Weinstein is the new Director of the Center for the Evaluative Clinical Sciences (CECS.) Under Weinstein's leadership the Center will be given new status as the Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice. The change in name will be effective August 1, 2007.

Weinstein will replace his colleague and mentor Dr. John (Jack) Wennberg, who is stepping down as leader of CECS, which he founded and has led since 1988.

Dr. Stephen P. Spielberg, vice president for health affairs at the college and dean of Dartmouth Medical School, said: "This is a historic moment for Dartmouth College. For 30 years under Jack Wennberg's leadership, CECS has transformed not just our understanding of the problems within our health care system, but the manner in which we practice medicine, train effective health care leaders and physicians, and approach the tough questions around variations in the provision of care. With a new, unique institute dedicated to these efforts, Jim Weinstein will continue and expand on this critical work."

The appointment of Weinstein was made with the unanimous support of the leaders of the College, Dartmouth Medical School, and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. It represents an enhanced collaboration among the entities and a greater integration of CECS research, teaching, leadership training, systems improvement, and clinical practice initiatives across the institutions.

In a statement from the Office of the Presidents at DHMC, Dr. Thomas A. Colacchio, and Nancy A. Formella, MSN, RN, said Weinstein's background and experience is uniquely suited to this new role. "As an internationally recognized researcher and active clinician, Jim represents the marriage of probing scientific inquiry with the practical delivery of excellent patient care. He has innovated and continues to lead in both fields, to the benefit of those who deliver care and the patients we serve. Jim is the embodiment of DHMC's mission of advancing health through research, education, clinical practice and community partnerships."

Weinstein is professor and chair of Orthopaedics at Dartmouth Medical School and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, and professor of community and family medicine. He founded the Spine Center at DHMC, as well as the first-in-the-nation Center for Shared Decision Making, both internationally renowned. A practicing surgeon, specializing in lumbar spine surgery and the treatment of spinal tumors, he received his DO from the Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1977 and an MS from Dartmouth College in 1996.

Also a highly regarded researcher, Weinstein is one of only seven people to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine. He is the principal investigator for the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT), the largest study ever funded by musculoskeletal arm of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He is the author of more than 200 published articles and editor-in-chief of the journal Spine.

As both researcher and physician, Weinstein has been a strong advocate for decision-making partnerships between physicians and patients, particularly in cases where the choice of one treatment over another can be termed a "close call." He has argued forcefully for changing the longheld tradition of "informed consent" to one of "informed choice."

"I am absolutely delighted that Jim will lead the next generation of CECS," said departing Director Wennberg. "More than anyone, he understands how our research can be applied in the real world to improve patient care, reform our health care system, and produce a new kind of health care leader."

The Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice will build on the groundbreaking work that Dr. Wennberg spearheaded, according to Weinstein. He said there will be particular focus in the coming months to recruit new faculty, to support and nurture junior faculty, and to build endowment for the continued growth of the Institute. Construction of a new home for the Institute has been announced by the College and Medical Center, as part of the C. Everett Koop Medical Science Complex.

"Jack has presented me with an unprecedented opportunity to change the delivery of care for a nation. The work that he has pioneered along with brilliant and accomplished colleagues such as Elliott Fisher, Paul Batalden, Gerry O'Connor and many, many others is now being recognized and heeded. We all stand on the shoulders of those who came before us and I am proud and honored to stand on the shoulders of Jack Wennberg," Weinstein said.

-DMS-

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