PHILADELPHIA Penn Medicine was recognized with two Gold Excellence awards by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) for its efforts to create positive change in the community. Penn Medicine was honored for its work redeveloping Philadelphias former Civic Center into a matrix of world-class medical research and treatment centers. The award included the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC), who owned the land, as well as the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), which has also built in the area.

The two honors, in the categories of Public Private Partnerships for communities with populations greater than 500,000, and Partnerships with Educational Institutions for communities with populations greater than 500,000, were presented at an awards ceremony earlier this month at the IEDC Annual Conference in Philadelphia. The non-profit IEDC is a membership organization serving economic developers. Its Excellence in Economic Development Awards recognize the worlds best economic development programs and partnerships, marketing materials, and the years most influential leaders.

The former Civic Center site now houses Penn Medicines Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine, the Smilow Center for Translational Research, and the Roberts Proton Therapy Center, all of which have taken shape since 2005. The area is also the site of the Colket Translational Research Building and the Buerger Center for Advanced Pediatric Care, slated to open in 2015.

Together, Penn Medicine and CHOP invested more than $2 billion in its facilities on the site, and construction on another one millionsquare feet of space isexpected to finish by 2015.

###

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 theRaymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania(founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and theUniversity 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 16 years, according toU.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 $398 million awarded in the 2012 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 byU.S. News & World Report; Penn Presbyterian Medical Center; Chester County Hospital; 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 2012, Penn Medicine provided$827million to benefit our community.

See the original post here:

Penn Medicine Named Among Recipients of Two Excellence in Economic Development Awards from the International Economic ...