Science in Service of Medicine

Our academic teams worked resolutely throughout the pandemic, contributing to the systemwide COVID-19 response with rapid outcomes studies and clinical trials as well as continuing to make landmark discoveries in each of our Centers of Excellence. This annual report shares some of the stories that embody our mission to meet the most demanding challenges faced by patients and their physicians.

In 2021, our academic community further cemented its position at the center of a global collaborative network that moves medical research from concept to clinical impact and educates healthcare professionals in the latest medical breakthroughs. This year, the Ann Kimball and John W. Johnson Center for Cellular Therapeutics’ dedicated laboratory space was completed. This cGMP facility provides our experts with the in-house capability to develop, manufacture and bring new cell-based treatments to clinical application. The new center is located in Houston Methodist’s Outpatient Center, which is right in the heart of our clinical operations. Our new Center for Translational Neural Prosthetics and Interfaces in partnership with Rice University is bringing together scientists, clinicians, engineers and surgeons to solve clinical problems with neurostimulation and robotics. One exciting new project in this center involves the development of a “sleeping cap” that can analyze and stimulate the proper flow of cerebrospinal fluid to “cleanse” the brain and thus amplify the restorative function of sleep. The U.S. Army has awarded the research group $2.8 million, the first installment of a multiyear grant through the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium. In 2021, we also welcomed the inaugural class of the Weill Cornell Graduate School doctoral program in Physiology, Biophysics & Systems Biology at Houston Methodist that builds upon our long-standing academic affiliation with Weill Cornell.

None of this work would be possible without the dedication and support of our visionary Houston Methodist Academic Institute board members, generous donors and brilliant faculty. Our work together has established Houston Methodist as a leading academic medical center, and I am honored to be a part of this journey to the future of medicine.