During residency he spent time in England at Atkinson Morley's Hospital and had the opportunity start clinical research on the natural history of cerebral aneurysms working with Alan Richardson and pursuing long-term outcome studies initiated by Sir Wylie McKissock.
[1] Winn held faculty positions in the departments of neurosurgery and physiology at the University of Virginia, rising to full professor and vice chairman of neurological surgery.
In February 2002, Winn was asked by UW administrators to step down temporarily in the midst of a federal criminal investigation into possible billing fraud.
[2] In July, 2002 Winn pleaded guilty to one obstruction of justice charge and agreed to resign his position as chairman of the Neurosurgery Department at the University of Washington, as well as his operating privileges at Harborview Medical Center.
Other honors include being selected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1992) "for studies in cerebral metabolism and for pioneering investigations defining the physiologic regulation of brain blood flow," the Wakeman Award for Research in the Neurosciences (1990), the Sir Wylie McKissock Neuroscience Prize (1992) from St. George's Medical School, London and the Grass Foundation Award (1999) from the Society of Neurological Surgery "for excellence in research contributions in the areas of science and academic neurosurgery."