PHILADELPHIA — This Friday, the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania will bestow short white coats on 156 first year medical school students during its annual White Coat Ceremony, the rite of passage experienced by students across the country in their journeys toward a health care career.
This is the 250th class to enter Perelman, but the first to begin its training in the new, state-of-the-art Henry A. Jordan Medical Education Center at Penn. Back in 1765, when the school officially opened with just 10 students, the landscape was drastically different. Students paid just $8 to $10 a course and there were only roughly 100 medicines available—today, it’s about 13,000.
This year’s incoming class hails from 25 states—Pennsylvania represents the largest portion with 23 students—and 65 colleges from around the country, including Penn, Harvard and Yale. Nearly 25 percent of the students come from underrepresented minorities in the field of medicine.
During the event, students will be individually garbed in white clinicians’ coats, a vivid symbol of the medical profession, and receive a stethoscope in the presence of family, friends, and faculty. At the conclusion, the entire class will recite the Hippocratic Oath, pledging to treat the ill to the best of their abilities, preserve each patient's privacy, and to teach the secrets of medicine to the next generation.
Click here for a White Coat Ceremony slideshow!
| WHERE: |
Zellerbach Theatre
Annenberg Center
University of Pennsylvania
3680 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104 |
WHEN: |
August 14, 2015 (3:00 pm to 5:00 pm) (**White Coat presentation starts at 3:40 pm**) |
WHO: |
Panel participants will include:
- 3:05 p.m. – J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, executive vice president of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System and dean of the Perelman School of Medicine, presents welcoming remarks
- 3:15 PM - Keynote address, Yes You Can!, presented by Jack Ludmir, MD, Chair, department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Pennsylvania Hospital and Vice Chair , department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
- 3:40 p.m. – White coats presented by Gail Morrison, MD, senior vice dean for Education and director of the Office of Academic Programs, and Stanley Goldfarb, MD, associate dean for Curriculum
- 4:40 p.m. – Incoming class recites Hippocratic Oath
The Penn Medicine Department of Communications can arrange interviews with students and speakers. |
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Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $4.3 billion enterprise.
The Perelman School of Medicine has been ranked among the top five medical schools in the United States for the past 17 years, according to U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $392 million awarded in the 2013 fiscal year.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System's patient care facilities include: The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania -- recognized as one of the nation's top "Honor Roll" hospitals by U.S. News & World Report; Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; Chester County Hospital; Lancaster General Health; Penn Wissahickon Hospice; and Pennsylvania Hospital -- the nation's first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional affiliated inpatient care facilities and services throughout the Philadelphia region include Chestnut Hill Hospital and Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a partnership between Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network and Penn Medicine.
Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2013, Penn Medicine provided $814 million to benefit our community.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.