The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences was established in 1824, due to the need for doctors in the District of Columbia . The school formally opened its doors a year later in 1825. It is the eleventh oldest medical school in the United States and the first medical school established in the nation's capital. The school has more than 700 medical students currently enrolled in its Doctor of Medicine program.GW saw rise in the number of applications, to 14,649 applications in 2012. It receives more applications each year than any other allopathic medical school in the country.GW's innovations include the six-million volt linear accelerator, a radioisotope laboratory, and the first operating theaters with overhead observation decks, among others. Political figures, such as former Vice President Dick Cheney and former First Lady Laura Bush, also come to GW for routine and emergency procedures. The school was in the national spotlight in 1981 when US President Ronald Reagan, shot at close range, was rushed to its ER for surgery.The Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library is the academic library for GW SMHS.
