The American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) celebrates Academic Medicine Week annually in June as a way to recognize and highlight the value of academic medicine and its unparalleled contributions to the health of patients, families, and communities nationwide.
At WMed during Academic Medicine Week June 8-12, 2026, we are proud to join other medical schools, academic health systems, and teaching hospitals from across the nation to celebrate how academic medicine works for America.
Academic medicine creates better health now and a healthier future for all. We train current and future physicians and health professionals to deliver high-quality care. We drive medical breakthroughs via cutting-edge research and innovation. We promote health equity by providing hope and expert patient care in our communities that they can’t get elsewhere.
What begins inside medical schools, teaching hospitals, and health systems across the country doesn’t just help patients survive, it helps them thrive. It gives hope and transforms care.
Visit academicmedicine.aamc.org to learn more about the missions of academic medicine – medical education, research, and patient care – and browse an interactive map that includes information about AAMC member institutions across the US. Academic medicine exists to serve patients. The videos linked below reveal how academic medicine is improving the lives of patients and communities:
- A World Without Academic Medicine
- How Academic Medicine Serves Patients
- What Starts Here Saves Lives
Research and Innovation
Innovation is the core of academic medicine, driving medical research and breakthroughs critical to treating patients, saving lives, and helping Americans live longer.
Medical Education
Current and future health professionals are educated and trained in 163 accredited medical schools and nearly 500 teaching hospitals and health systems.
Patient Care
By embracing forward-thinking practices and cutting-edge technology, we bring the highest level of care and specialized services that patients can’t get elsewhere. Academic medicine builds and sustains healthy communities.
Economic Impact
Medical schools, academic health systems and teaching hospitals are economic engines that drive their communities and the groundbreaking treatments and cures that start in academic medicine position America as the world’s leader in medical innovation.