School of Medicine

Bradley Schlaggar, MD, PhD, a pediatric neurologist, studies brain development at the School of Medicine. And he has a lot of empathy for patients and their families. A series of medical challenges his own family has endured in recent years deepened his understanding of what it means to be a doctor.

Robert C. Drews, MD, a professor emeritus of clinical ophthalmology at the School of Medicine, died May 9 at his home in St. Louis, following a stroke. He was 86. Drews was also an alumnus and a former member of the Board of Trustees.

John DiPersio, MD, PhD, the Virginia E. and Samuel J. Golman Endowed Professor of Oncology and director of the Division of Oncology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named a 2017 Legacy Leadership Award honoree by the Gateway Chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Washington University in St. Louis researchers Jose A. Moron-Concepcion and Thomas Rodebaugh are among 40 scholars selected to receive 2017 Independent Investigator grants from the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, one of the top nongovernmental funders of mental health research grants.

Jean Holowach Thurston, MD, a pioneering pediatric neurologist at the School of Medicine, died April 29. She was 99. Thurston’s influential research served as a guide for colleagues in treating childhood seizure disorders.

John M. Fredrickson, MD, former head of the Department of Otolaryngology and a professor emeritus of otolaryngology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, died April 5, 2017, in Vancouver, Canada. He was 86.

As dangerous bacteria grow more savvy at evading antibiotics, researchers are seeking new ways to counterattack. Rather than design new drugs from scratch, some scientists are searching for ways to block the microbes’ evasive maneuvers. If resistance can be shut down, current drugs should remain effective. That concept is demonstrated in a new study from the School of Medicine.

Five doctoral candidates at Washington University in St. Louis were inducted into the Edward A. Bouchet Graduate Honor Society at the annual Bouchet Conference on Diversity in Graduate Education April 7-8 at Yale University.

Nearly one-third of the 135 students graduating this month from the School of Medicine will receive more than one degree. Those 44 students also will have earned advanced degrees in fields such as public health, biology and business. The drive for dual degrees reflects burgeoning motivation among physicians-to-be, particularly those attending the nation’s top-tier medical schools.

When Hilary Gallin discovered something was missing from her medical school training, she did something about it. Realizing there was no instruction on how to treat patients with disabilities, Gallin created a multiyear curriculum that has evolved into a mission for the School of Medicine.