CHARLES W. BODEMER LECTURE

Charles W. Bodemer was founder and chair of the Department of Biomedical History (now the Department of Bioethics & Humanities) from 1967-1985. Trained in anatomy, Dr. Bodemer had a distinguished career as a research scientist before dedicating his energies to his other love: the history of medicine. A prolific writer and dynamic teacher in that field, he used his understanding of medicine’s evolution to provide the UW School of Medicine—students and faculty alike—with a deeper appreciation of the human and social dimension of medical practice. Open to the community, the Bodemer Lecture honors his groundbreaking labors in the development of medical history and ethics at the University of Washington. This annual lecture covers topics in the areas of medical ethics and medical history.

Our 2012 lecture held in February, featured Len Nichols, PhD., Professor of Health Policy and Director of the Center for Health Policy Research and Ethics at George Mason University.

Dr. Nichols presented on “The Physician Leadership We Need”. With all the focus on cost pressures, insufficient attention has been devoted to the leadership role that physicians must play if the transformation of health systems is to be successful.

Dr. Nichols, Professor of Health Policy and Director of the Center for Health Policy Research and Ethics, joined George Mason University in in early 2010. He plans to continue the work began he began at the New America Foundation, bridging the worlds of health economics and health services research for health system stakeholders and clinical leaders, elected and appointed policy officials and journalists. He founded and directed Health CEOs for Health Reform, a group that was pivotal in helping policy makers see that delivery system reform and health insurance reform are necessary and feasible complements.

Nichols has testified frequently before Congress and state legislatures, published widely in a variety of health journals, and is a popular public speaker on health policy and politics. Before joining George Mason, Nichols served as the Director of the Health Policy Program at the New America Foundation, the vice president of the Center for Studying Health System Change, a principal research associate at the Urban Institute, senior advisor for health policy at the Office of Management and Budget during the Clinton Administration’s health reform effort, and chair of the Economics Department at Wellesley College. He has advised the World Bank and the Pan American Health Organization, as well as various state governments and departments of the US Government.

Because of his reputation as an honest and knowledgeable health policy analyst, he is frequently interviewed and quoted by major media outlets including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Congressional Quarterly, National Journal, National Public Radio, Lerher News Hour, the British Broadcasting Service, NBC Nightly News, ABC News Tonight, and CBS Evening News. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in 1980.

Previous Bodemer Lectures: