Urology department gifted $13.3 million
The USC Institute of Urology announced Tuesday that it received a $13.3-million donation to fund the institute’s USC Urology Robotics Center of Excellence and the Program for Prostrate Cancer Targeting.
Gift · The USC Institute of Urology, located in the Healthcare Consultation Center I, received a $13.3-million anonymous donation. - Photo courtesy of USC
The anonymous gift was presented at the Urology Vision 2012 meeting, held Feb. 7, which highlighted the institute’s progress and advances since Dr. Inderbir Gill, chairman of the USC Urology Institute, arrived at the institute in 2009.
President C. L. Max Nikias, who attended the event, said the gift will propel USC to be a global frontrunner in urology.
“Today the USC Institute of Urology is an internationally renowned powerhouse in robotic and open surgery. Tomorrow we look forward to being a cutting-edge comprehensive world leader in urology,” Nikias said. “Surgeries that were once considered fantasies are now a fact. Our Institute of Urology is helping redefine and reshape the field of urology.”
Gill said the institute focuses on the development and utilization of state-of-the-art technology.
“To be successful, you need a market differentiator,” he said. “A true market differentiator implies being the world’s best at a specific endeavor, which also drives your economic engine. You are lucky if you have one true market differentiator. USC urology has two: robotic kidney and prostate cancer surgery and open bladder cancer surgery.”
Since Gill’s arrival, the number of major urological surgeries and patient admissions has grown by more than 65 percent annually, having performed more than 2,500 bladder surgeries. Department collections also increased 65 percent between 2010 and 2012.
The department, which includes seven clinical sub-specialty centers, has 21 faculty physicians and researchers, 18 urology residents, 10 postgraduate fellows, five physician assistants and 29 staff members.
The institute received more than $3 million in research funding from the National Institute of Health in 2012, and was ranked No. 2 in the nation for urology. U.S. News & World Report ranked the institute 18th in the nation.