May 31, 2006

Dear Colleagues:

It is my great pleasure to announce the appointment of David L. Thomas, M.D., as the new head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

He succeeds the venerable John Bartlett, who has led the division for the last 26 years and grew the department from three full-time faculty and a budget of $200,000, to its current position of international strength. In caring for patients infected with HIV-1, U.S. News & World Report consistently ranked the division among the best American academic medical centers. And the Division is unquestionably among the world's leaders in tuberculosis, viral hepatitis, infection control, health education and other global infectious diseases.

In his new role, Thomas will lead the division's 55 faculty and 177 staff who treat more than 5,100 patients a year and run the nations third largest AIDS clinic. He will also oversee an annual research budget of more than $40 million, one of the largest at Hopkins, with major research initiatives underway in several global diseases and hospital pathogens.

Dave's commitment to the School's missions in research and education is equaled by his passion and caring for patients. For the last year, he has been working with local health officials in Uganda at an AIDS institute that provides life-saving HIV-1 treatment to more than 4,000 Ugandans. The institute also provides intensive training in HIV-1 care for physicians and nurses throughout sub-Saharan Africa . As many as one-third of those infected with HIV are also infected with hepatitis C, which is Dave's primary area of expertise.

Dave has spent most of the last two decades conducting research in Baltimore, finding out how hepatitis C is transmitted and what happens to those who contract it, especially in intravenous drug users with weakened immune systems . For his dedication to translating medical research into advances in the care of people living with both infections, the American Society of Clinical Investigation named him in 2001 to its honor list of physician-scientists.

Since joining Hopkins in 1990 as a research fellow in infectious diseases, he has distinguished himself for his contributions to research, skills training and leadership development. His global thinking led him to earn a master's in public health at the Bloomberg School of Public Health and he is a member of the faculty there as well. He was elected a full professor at the School of Medicine in 2003.

With Dave's appointment, I am certain the division will continue to thrive, training the next generation of experts in the field that is of growing significance to world health, as well as to the health of our own communities. I know you join me in congratulating him on a well-deserved achievement.

Sincerely,
Edward D. Miller, M.D.
Dean/CEO
Johns Hopkins Medicine