Medicine of the Highest Order: The University of Rochester Medical Center at its Centennial: Advancing Health, Enriching Lives (Meliora Press)

Chronicling the last 25 years of URMC's one-hundred-year history, this book updates previous histories in celebration of the organization's centennial by detailing developments at both strategic and departmental levels.


In the mid-1920s, some of the most progressive minds in the nation united to change the course of medicine. Well-known educator Abraham Flexner turned to Rochester as the place to establish a medical school premised on his philosophy of science and education. The ideas were revolutionary yet simple. Structured within a university, the University of Rochester Medical Center's physician and scientific faculty would blend scientific inquiry, learning, and patient care under one roof, fostering the powerful interaction of all three missions. Flexner termed it, "a medical school of the highest order."

For one hundred years, this concept has served as a litmus test guiding the growth of the University of Rochester Medical Center. This book looks at developments since the turn of the 21st century. On a school, hospital, and department basis, it commemorates the strategies and individuals who have furthered this philosophy and practice of collaboration.

Mark B. Taubman, MD is a vascular biologist and cardiologist who was recruited to the University of Rochester Medical Center in 2003 to be chief of Cardiology and to establish the Aab Cardiovascular Research Institute. He subsequently served as chair of the Department of Medicine and for fourteen years as dean of the School of Medicine and Dentistry. During his last nine years as dean, he also served as CEO of the Medical Center. In 2024, he became Emeritus dean and CEO.