Measuring Success

As a research university, we frequently measure our research success using quantifiable measures like, “How many research dollars did we bring in?” “How many research papers did we publish?” These metrics have their place, but they do not provide the whole picture. The true measure of our success is, “What difference did we make—to our patients, our communities, our state, our world?” And every one of us, in our own role, in our own way, contributes to that.

In today’s video, Drs. Vinogradov and Redish note that part of the collaborative success of the NeuroPRSMH* Center is the shared belief the group has that they can do more together than the individual members can alone and, in this way, one person’s success then becomes everyone’s success.

This is a perfect model for our Medical School.

This week, as happens most weeks, our researchers published results of their work that make a difference. Some examples:

• Bringing us closer to a test that would identify ovarian cancer in its early stages and save lives.
• Developing a rapid test for COVID-19 that would allow diagnosis without laboratory testing.
• Examining how SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, impacts the body at a cellular level.
• These are all important accomplishments for the individual investigators and their teams, but the achievement also belongs to all of us. Each of us can take pride every day in how we made a difference or who we helped. We are all interconnected in our efforts.

I found the discussion inspiring, and urge you to watch the video and discover new ways to think about your own work.