University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Preventive Medicine Department

The mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to improve the health and well-being of Tennesseans and the global community by fostering integrated, collaborative, and inclusive education, research, scientific discovery, clinical care, and public service.

As the flagship statewide, public, academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care and public service. Employing more than 6,000 people on its faculty, staff and not-for-profit corporation faculty practice groups, UTHSC contributes more than $4 billion to the economy of Tennessee.

In 1911, the University of Tennessee first launched its Memphis campus, dedicating it solely to health science education and research. Seed programs in medicine, dentistry and pharmacy quickly flourished, and within a few short years, new programs were initiated in health professions, graduate health sciences and nursing. Each of those programs grew to become a college in its own right.

In 1963, the UT Graduate School of Medicine in Knoxville, based at the UT Medical Center, became part of the UT Health Science Center. In 1974, the UT College of Medicine in Chattanooga, based at Erlanger Health System, joined the UTHSC system.

In 2014, Saint Thomas Health in Nashville began collaborating with UTHSC to create a Nashville campus.