Philip Lee
Philip Lee, MD, former UCSF chancellor, will be honored for his long legacy of leadership at two upcoming events at UCSF Mission Bay.
A symposium, titled "Looking Back, Looking Forward," will be held on Monday, Sept. 24, and a celebration to announce the name of the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 25. Both events are scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m. at the UCSF Mission Bay Conference Center, Robertson Auditorium, 1675 Owens St., San Francisco. Receptions follow both events.
The events are sponsored by the institute, which celebrates its 35th anniversary, and the UCSF School of Medicine. Those interested in attending the symposium are asked to RSVP by today (Sept. 17)
here. For more information, call 415/476-1500.
In his career, Lee has shown leadership as a practicing physician, public health advocate at local, state, national and global levels, teacher, mentor, researcher, government policymaker, adviser and academic administrator. He has been steadfast in his commitment to the needs of the disadvantaged, including the elderly, the disabled and those without access to care.
Lee, who served as UCSF's third chancellor from 1969 to 1972, is the founding director of the Institute for Health Policy Studies, which will be renamed in his honor. He fostered innovative health policy research by founding the institute, which was first called the Health Policy Program. It was the first health policy unit in an academic health sciences center to bring together an interdisciplinary group of faculty to address complex health issues.
Today, the institute is one of the nation's premier centers for health policy and health services research on the health care system and health care reform, reproductive health, the health of children and youths, chronic illness and disability, prescription drug policies, tobacco and health, other substance abuse, HIV/AIDS and research integrity.
But the institute faces daunting challenges. Today, scientists and health scholars have growing concerns that ideology and politics, rather than evidence-based research, are playing a larger role in influencing health policy decisions. In addition, they are seeing a sharp reduction in research proposals funded by the federal government, restrictions or denials of research funding in some areas, and refusal to fund follow-up studies deemed too controversial even though initial results indicated substantial health benefits.
The institute also will be establishing the Philip R. Lee Health Policy Fellowship Fund, which will allow the institute to train a new generation of health policy and health services research leaders from diverse backgrounds.
As a champion of diversity, Lee has been devoted his life to advocating greater diversity in the health profession, teaching and mentoring future health policy leaders, and shaping and implementing health policies to improve health care and the health of all people. As chancellor, Lee was known for his commitment to academic excellence and affirmative action.
Lee has worked to improve the health of people in San Francisco, particularly during his term from 1985 to 1989 as president of the newly established Health Commission of the City and County of San Francisco.
Lee continues to help policymakers and others understand that California is a rapidly growing and increasingly diverse state, and that both its educational and health care institutions must meet the needs of diverse populations.
He also has contributed to the health of the nation, serving as US Department of Health and Human Services assistant secretary under Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Bill Clinton. And Lee contributed to global health during his 1963 to 1965 tenure with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) as director of health services and as an adviser to health policymakers in many countries. At the USAID, Lee drafted the first US policies for international family planning services and helped to strengthen the agency's health and nutrition program.
Related Links:
Philip R. Lee Event website
