Iowa names new dean of Carver College of Medicine

University of Iowa officials Thursday named Debra A. Schwinn as the next dean of the Carver College of Medicine, succeeding former dean Paul Rothman.

Schwinn comes from the University of Washington in Seattle, where she is professor and chairwoman of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, the Allan J. Treuer Endowed Professor of Anesthesiology, and adjunct professor of Pharmacology and Genome Sciences.

Schwinn's appointment is effective Nov. 1, pending approval of the state Board of Regents. Donna Hammond will continue as acting dean until Schwinn's arrival. Rothman left the UI for Johns Hopkins University on July 1.

Schwinn is a nationally known investigator in molecular pharmacology with active funding from the National Institutes of Health, UI officials said. She is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science, and numerous other national and international organizations. She holds four U.S. patents and one Australian patent.

Schwinn received her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine, completed a residency in anesthesiology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and a clinical fellowship in cardiac anesthesiology at Duke University Medical Center.

Prior to joining the University of Washington, she was on the Duke faculty for 18 years. At Duke, Schwinn directed the school's Third Year Program (research), and was a planning team member organizing a new Duke-sponsored graduate medical school for Southeast Asia, based in Singapore.