This year's Research Week (May 2-6, 2011) continues a long-standing annual tradition of both celebrating the achievements of exceptional Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) researchers and paying tribute to Veterans who generously volunteer to participate in VA studies. Dating back to 1995, Research Week has spotlighted the vital contributions of VA investigators to medical understanding and patient care. This year's dual-pronged theme, Discovery and Collaboration for Exceptional Health Care, also paid special tribute to VA's eminent partners, including the academic affiliates nationwide that collaborate with VA and our invaluable Federal partners such as the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense. VA continually joins forces with others steadfastly committed to improving the health of Veterans and all Americans. These partnerships magnify the research impact of VA's world-class intramural research program. This means that breakthrough findings come faster and are more swiftly translated into life-improving therapies. VA-academic joint efforts have augmented VA's capabilities in health research, as well as education and training, for 65 years, since the historic document known as Policy Memorandum No. 2 partnered VA with the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). These collaborations have become increasingly critical with the increasing sophistication of medical research and the ever-growing complexity of Veterans' healthcare needs. Such healthcare challenges include injuries that are often combat-related, such as posttraumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and spinal cord injury, and chronic illnesses, such as heart disease and cancer. Much of the world's leading research on these conditions is done by investigators who are dually affiliated with VA and a partner university. At the Center for Restorative and Regenerative Medicine, for example, a large multidisciplinary team representing the Providence VA Medical Center (VAMC), Brown University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology applies their combined expertise in areas such as bionics, tissue engineering, and nanotechnology to advance healthcare and rehabilitation for Veterans. Among other successes, their work has resulted in a commercially available robotic foot-ankle prosthesis offered to Veterans and Active Duty personnel. Other studies focus on the BrainGate, a remarkable technology that shows promise as an upper-limb prosthetic control system and as a means of enabling patients with paralysis to accomplish various tasks--such as controlling a computer cursor--solely through their thoughts. Research Week was a time to laud VA researchers for their fantastic progress in these areas and many more, with exciting events held at VA Central Office (VACO) and other VACO facilities across the country. On May 5, 2011, VACO hosted its annual Research Forum, with a packed schedule of distinguished speakers on VA research. Among the leaders with whom I had the honor of sharing the stage were VA Chief of Staff John R. Gingrich; and VA Deputy Secretary for Health for Policy and Services Madhulika Agarwal, MD, MPH. Other distinguished guest speakers included-- * Ann C. Bonham, PhD, AAMC Chief Scientific Officer, presenting the illustrious history of VA-academic partnerships. * Colonel Greg Gadson, U.S. Army Wounded Warrior Program Director, speaking about the committed teamwork among Federal Government agencies. * E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, Vice President for Medical Affairs and Dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, presenting a university perspective on VA-academic joint efforts. …