Richard S. Ross, former dean of the
School of Medicine and vice president for medicine of
the university, and a renowned cardiologist who served as
president of the American Heart Association, will be given
the The Johns Hopkins University President's Medal in
recognition of his distinguished career in medicine and
"extraordinary contributions to higher education, patient
care and public health."
President William R. Brody
will present the medal to Ross at a special reception from
4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 27, in the Thomas B.
Turner Concourse of the School of Medicine, East Baltimore
campus.
At the reception, Brody said, Ross will be recognized
for his "efforts to understand and treat patients in the
clinic, in the research lab and at the highest levels of
health care administration."
"This is a great opportunity to recognize Dr. Ross'
extraordinary accomplishments in medicine and his lifelong
devotion to improving the public health," added Edward D.
Miller, dean of the medical faculty and CEO of Johns
Hopkins Medicine.
Ross served as dean of the medical school from 1975 to
1990, the second longest tenure in the history of Johns
Hopkins, during which time he oversaw substantial growth of
the faculty and research funding from the National
Institutes of Health.
Among his significant contributions as a
clinician-scientist-teacher, he directed the Wellcome
Research Laboratory at Johns Hopkins, in which scientists
developed several novel methods of examining and treating
heart conditions. In the 1960s, they developed coronary
cineangiography, a method of studying dynamic movements of
the heart using cine film. A technique of measuring
myocardial blood flow with radioactive gas injected
selectively into the coronary arteries also originated from
the lab.
Other areas of Ross' research included the
relationship between coronary anatomy and prognosis in
coronary artery disease and the evaluation of surgical
procedures for the treatment of coronary artery disease.
One testament to his expertise came when he was asked to be
one of three physicians to evaluate whether President Nixon
was well enough to testify during the Watergate trials.
The JHU President's Medal is an honor extended by the
university to individuals who have achieved unusual
distinction and has been awarded to heads of state, members
of Congress, diplomats, literary figures, academics and
other noteworthy individuals. First bestowed in 1978, the
medal is awarded at the discretion of the president.
Previous recipients include Supreme Court Justice
William Brennan, Sen. Bob Kasten, Corazon Aquino, Tom
Clancy, Tom Wolfe, Leon Uris, Leon Fleischer, Walter
Sondheim and Colin Powell.
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