Research News

NIH Ranks Department 10th in Research Funding

The National Institutes of Health ranks the UIC Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences number 10 in receipt of research awards.

Publication of NIH data on awards to medical schools by department for fiscal year 2002 lists the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences in 10th place, among a total of 66 departments of ophthalmology across the nation.

“Credit goes to the great work of our colleagues in the research arm of our endeavor,” said Department Chairman Jose Pulido, M.S., M.D. “Vision research is a fundamental and historical strength of this department. The vision research conducted here not only guides our patient care and teaching activities, it expands knowledge about the visual function and eye disease.”

The department has a total of 15 awards from NIH, including the 11 research awards counted by NIH for the ranking. The other four awards include the department's Core Grant for Vision Research, continually funded since in 1978, two clinical studies, and another research grant, awarded in 2003.

The department also has research awards from other government agencies and private sources, including the Veterans Administration and Research to Prevent Blindness, Inc., a leading private funder of vision research.

The 2002 NIH ranking is a move up for the department, which was ranked 20th in 2001. “I am very glad to see us in the top ten,” said Dr. Pulido. “We expect to continue our forward momentum in this area.”

The NIH rankings can be viewed at: http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/award/rank/ophthalmology02.htm