The Division of Clinical Pharmacology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine is part of both the Department of Medicine and of the Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences. An endowment made in 1971 by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund established the Wellcome Professorship and the annual Sir Henry Dale Lecture.

Past directors of the Division include Louis Lasagna, whose research on the quantitative measurement of pain and the importance of the placebo were seminal; Pedro Cuatrecasas, best known for his discovery of the insulin receptor; Paul Lietman whose deep interest in anti-infective agents molded the careers of most of the current faculty; Theresa Shapiro, whose interests include the discovery and development of new treatments for malaria and other parasitic infections. Since 2015, the Division has been directed by Craig Hendrix whose primary research focus is the development of drugs for HIV prevention.

Research efforts of the current faculty focus primarily on therapies for infectious diseases: antibiotics, antiparasitics, antifungals, and antivirals. In addition, we have faculty with interests in imaging neurogenetics and phytopharmacology. Of particular interest are studies that translate laboratory discoveries into clinical practice. Each faculty member has an individual research program, sometimes with a substantial molecular laboratory component. All of our laboratory-focused PhD faculty also lead clinical studies. Nearly all clinical studies are conducted in the Division's Drug Development Unit, often with support from the Division's Clinical Pharmacology Analytical Laboratory, and the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (CTSA) Clinical Research Units.

The Clinical Pharmacology faculty at Johns Hopkins teach undergraduates, medical students, graduate students in three Schools of the University, housestaff, and peer physicians. Major teaching venues include Scientific Foundations of Medicine and Genes to Society Courses for first year medical students, the Graduate Training Program in Clinical Investigation, Graduate Pharmacology; and 330.808 Principles of Clinical Pharmacology and 330.809 Analytical Methods in the Clinical Pharmacology. An important aspect of teaching is the individual mentoring of young colleagues. Trainees from the Division have risen to international leadership positions in academia, industry, and federal agencies. The Division of Clinical Pharmacology impacts directly on patient care at the Johns Hopkins Hospital via the office of the Hospital Pharmacologist. This innovative mechanism brings a scholarly approach to key policy decisions on rational drug selection and usage in the hospital.