Achieving Our Goal

As of January 1, 2006, we have raised $115,736,550 million to support the scientific mission of this Hospital, and now is a great time to thank the efforts of our Board of Trustees and members of the medical and scientific staff for their roles in helping raise this exceptional sum.

This outpouring of philanthropic support for the Campaign for Research has been extraordinary, and I am delighted to thank the many close friends and supporters of HSS whose generosity has made this unprecedented initiative such a tremendous success.

Support from individuals, foundations, corporations, and government has enabled a revitalization of our research enterprise, and we are particularly thankful for the exceptional philanthropy of The Starr Foundation, Franchellie Cadwell, Katherine and Arnold Snider, William R. Salomon, and Charles H. Thieriot.

Seizing an Opportunity

Throughout HSS history, discoveries by our scientists have contributed greatly to advances in the field of musculoskeletal health care – from pioneering the first total knee replacement prosthesis in the United States to landmark investigations into the immunological causes of conditions such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Over the past decade, a new wave of scientific breakthroughs has opened entirely new avenues of scientific investigation – from the decoding of the human genome to advances in biotechnology, discoveries that have the potential to fundamentally transform the way we care for musculoskeletal conditions.

In consultation with the Hospital’s medical staff, scientific faculty, and senior management, the Board of Trustees agreed that taking the next step forward in musculoskeletal research required a major investment in this institution. A strategic planning process culminated in the Board’s unanimous endorsement of a major program to significantly expand the Hospital’s research enterprise and raise the philanthropic support needed to accomplish our objectives.

To implement this Strategic Plan, we took a number of key steps. First, we added several new members to our Board of Trustees who have tremendous expertise in the fields of medicine and science. Throughout the Campaign, the ideas and input of trustees Richard Brand, MD, Melvin J. Glimcher, MD, Carl F. Nathan, MD, and Torsten N. Wiesel, MD, have been essential to the expansion and enhancement of research at HSS. Second, we established an External Scientific Advisory Board, comprised of leaders in musculoskeletal research, to provide objective advice, insight, and counsel on the direction, competitiveness, and efficiency of HSS research. Third, we recruited a world renowned scientist, Francesco Ramirez, PhD, to serve as the Hospital’s first Chief Scientific Officer and lead the Research Division into this new era of scientific discovery.

Meeting the Challenge

Contributions toward musculoskeletal research at HSS have surged since the inception of the Campaign in 1998 and dramatically increased each following year. Generous gifts from individuals, foundations, and corporations, along with crucial public support at the federal, state, and local levels, have enabled us to raise the critical funding needed to sustain the Hospital’s pioneering research.

On the following pages, you will read about the incredible impact that has been made in science at HSS through philanthropic support for the Campaign: Modern research laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art scientific tools, a critical mass of multidisciplinary researchers with a common focus on musculoskeletal conditions, pacesetting research programs aimed at finding the causes of and treatments for musculoskeletal disease, and a stronger research endowment that will provide perpetual support for the breakthroughs of the future.

The success of the Campaign has taken our research enterprise to a new level. Thanks to the crucial guidance of Dr. Ramirez and, now, the current leadership team of Lionel B. Ivashkiv, MD, Director of Basic Research, and Robert N. Hotchkiss, MD, Director of Clinical Research, we have the tools, talent, and resources to accelerate scientific findings into novel methods of treatment and prevention.

With all good wishes,

Richard L. Menschel
Campaign Chair