In the spectacular auditorium of the New York Academy of Medicine on November 1, 2018, Academy Fellows gathered for the 171st Anniversary Discourse & Awards to celebrate four honorees for their distinguished contributions.
During the ceremony, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health Dean Linda Fried, MD, MPH presented the Stephen Smith Award for Distinguished Contributions in Public Health to Wafaa El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA, Founder and Global Director of ICAP at Columbia University.
Honors for biomedical science, health policy, and clinical practice were awarded to other notable individuals as well.
In her introduction, Dean Fried praised Dr. El-Sadr’s tremendous efforts in advocating for the vision that everyone is deserving of health and demonstrating that delivering health services—even in the most challenging places and contexts—is possible and can truly make a difference in our world.
In her acceptance remarks, Dr. El-Sadr stressed the importance of “listening to people and meeting their needs, not what we have determined to be their needs.”
In addition to honoring Dr. El-Sadr, the Academy presented the following awards:
- Wendy K. Chung, MD, PhD (The Academy Medal for Distinguished Contributions in Biomedical Science)
- Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, PhD (The Academy Medal for Distinguished Contributions in Health Policy)
- Patricia Bath, MD (The John Stearns Medal for Distinguished Contributions in Clinical Practice)
- Jo Ivey Boufford, MD (The Academy Plaque for Exceptional Service to the Academy)
- James McCune Smith, MD, MA (Special Posthumous Award of Academy Fellowship)
Georges C. Benjamin, MD, MACP, executive director of the American Public Health Association, gave the evening’s discourse presentation, “A New Social Compact to Achieve Optimal Health.”
More information on the celebration, including biographies of each honoree, is available on the New York Academy of Medicine website.
View an album of images from the event on Facebook.
Read more on the Mailman School of Public Health website.
Read more on the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health website.
