Editing Penn Medicine (section)

== History ==

The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, founded in 1765, was the first medical school in the American colonies. Established by Drs. John Morgan and William Shippen Jr., the school trained physicians using European models emphasizing formal education rather than apprenticeship alone. This founding positioned Philadelphia as America's medical education center during the revolutionary and early national periods.<ref name="pennmed"/>

The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) opened in 1874 on its current West Philadelphia campus, providing clinical facilities for medical education while serving the community. The hospital grew through the twentieth century, adding facilities, expanding services, and developing specialties that established its reputation among the nation's elite academic medical centers. Major buildings including the Silverstein Pavilion and the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine expanded capacity and capabilities.<ref name="pennmed"/>

Penn Medicine's current form emerged from the integration of clinical operations with the medical school, creating a unified academic health system. Acquisitions of community hospitals including Pennsylvania Hospital (ironically, the nation's oldest hospital, predating HUP), Chester County Hospital, and Lancaster General Health expanded the system's regional reach. This growth transformed Penn from a single academic medical center into a regional health system while maintaining academic and research missions.<ref name="pennmed"/>