WASHINGTON, DC (April 2, 2018)—The Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University and the Beyond Flexner Alliance today announced the selection of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation Awards for Excellence in Social Mission in Health Professions Education.
The purpose of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation Awards is to recognize outstanding leadership in promoting social mission in health professions education. Social mission is defined as activities or initiatives that teach, model, or improve community engagement, diversity, disparities reduction, value based care, or engagement with the social determinants of health. Social mission enhancement means making programs not only better, but fairer.
This year’s nomination process was highly competitive with awards presented in four categories: individual excellence, program excellence, institutional excellence, and lifetime achievement.
2018 Awardees
Individual Excellence
Neal A. Demby, DMD, MPH, D-ABSCD
For visionary leadership in creating hospital sponsored dental residency programs in which residents are placed full-time at one of 340 affiliated health centers in 26 US states and the Caribbean. The program currently supports 490 residents/year, the great majority of which continue to serve underserved populations upon graduation.
Program Excellence
Residency Program in Social Medicine
Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
Since 1970, the Residency Program in Social Medicine has graduated 813 family physicians, internists, and pediatricians, two-thirds of whom practice in community health centers and underserved areas, and all of whom seek social justice in transforming our health system.
Institutional Excellence
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
For its dedication to a social mission, pursuit of health equity, unwavering commitment to the residents of central and southern Illinois, and continued success in educating caring, compassionate, socially responsible leaders in medicine and health sciences.
Lifetime Achievement
Loretta C. Ford, EdD, RN, PNP, FAAN, FAANP
For an internationally known nursing leader whose studies on the nurse's expanded scope of practice in public health nursing led to the creation of the world’s first nurse practitioner training program at the University of Colorado in 1965. Her work has revolutionized the delivery of health services and the role of nursing in clinical care. Educator, mentor, researcher and advocate, she has made the world a better place.
The awards will be presented at the Beyond Flexner 2018 Conference in Atlanta, Georgia at a special recognition event the evening of April 9, 2018. The Beyond Flexner Conference is a comprehensive meeting for health professionals working to create a more equitable health care system for all.
Each awardee receives $2000 and a commemorative plaque. The awards are supported by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, which is dedicated to improving the health of the public by advancing the education and training of health professionals.