Dr. Jean Pape (left) holds the award he received from the Medical College's Diversity Committee luncheon on Oct. 10.
Despite torrential rains, more than 400 alumni returned to the Medical College on Oct. 10-12, 2002, to celebrate the biennial alumni reunion. The theme, "Celebrating New York," was chosen in commemoration of the one-year anniversary of the terror attacks of Sept. 11, and to celebrate the strength of the city and all the people who are, and have been, a part of its history.
The three-day event included an extensive continuing medical education (CME) program; Dean Antonio Gotto's State of the Medical College address; a State of the Hospital presentation by Dr. Herbert Pardes, president and CEO of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital; and a gala held at the historic Waldorf-Astoria hotel.
October 10
The Weill Medical College of Cornell University Alumni Association Diversity Committee kicked off the reunion with the "Diversity in Health" CME program, which included speakers such as Tina Brown-Stevenson, president of U.S. Quality Algorithms at Aetna Healthcare Inc.; Stan Kachnowski, lecturer at Columbia University and a member of the Medem Board of Directors; Dr. Winston Price, '74, chair, Alumni Diversity Committee, and president, VCASTI International; Dr. Carol Storey-Johnson, '77, senior associate dean for education and associate professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell; and Dr. Sanjiv Talwar, a postdoctoral fellow at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center.
The Diversity Committee also hosted an awards luncheon honoring Dr. Jean Pape, '75, director of the Cornell University Infectious Diseases Research Unit in Haiti and director of the Les Centres Groupe Haitien d'Etudes du Sarcome de Kaposi et des Infections Opportunistes (GHESKIO), and Dr. John Mitchell, '73, director of the Upper Manhattan Glaucoma and Health Taskforce. Dr. George Campbell, president of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, was the keynote speaker.
Dr. Jean Pape, '75
Dr. John Mitchell (left) holds the award he received from the Medical College's Diversity Committee luncheon on Oct. 10.
Dr. Jean Pape, a native of Haiti who has worked there since the onset of the AIDS epidemic in 1980, received his bachelor's from Columbia University in 1971, and his M.D. from Cornell University Medical College in 1975. He is a founder of GHESKIO, an organization which has championed education, health care and HIV research, and which has worked closely with Weill Cornell since its inception. He also directs, in concert with Weill Cornell's Division of International Medicine and Infectious Diseases, a National Institutes of Health training and research program that focuses on HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and diarrheal illness.
Dr. Pape is the recipient of numerous awards, including the United Nations Award, presented by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan for contributions to the fight against HIV/AIDS; the Legion of Merit Award; the Legion d' Honneur (Au Grade D'chevalier), presented by France's President Jacques Chirac, for Dr. Pape's contribution to the improvement of the health of the Haitian people and that of people in the world.
Dr. John Mitchell, '73
Dr. John Mitchell was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. He attended Cornell University, receiving his bachelor's in 1969 and his M.D. in 1973. In 1977, Dr. Mitchell opened a private ophthalmologic practice in Harlem, and has served Harlem for a quarter of a century as a doctor and community leader.
Dr. Mitchell has been president of the Manhattan Central Medical Society, chairman of the Empire State Medical Society (branches of the National Medical Association), and president-elect of the National Medical Association's Section of Ophthalmology. In his spare time, Dr. Mitchell teaches chess to at-risk African-American boys in an after-school program at the White Plains Middle School, under the auspices of the Westchester Clubmen, which runs tutoring and mentoring programs for African-American youth. He has received several honors, including Man of the Year (National Association of Negro Professional and Business Women), and Attending of the Year (Harlem Hospital Center).
October 11
(from left): Dr. Paul Miskovitz,'75, president of the WMC Alumni Association, presents a 2002 Honorary Fellowship Award to Dr. Warren Johnson, the B.H. Kean Professor of Tropical Medicine and chief of the Division of International Medicine and Infectious Diseases.
"Technology and Medicine" was the theme for the Friday morning's CME program, sponsored by the Medical College's 25th Reunion Classes (1976 and 1977) and the Weill Graduate School of Medical Sciences Committee. Speakers for this program included Dr. Jeffrey Bluestone, '80; Dr. Michael Draper, '76; Dr. Gregory Everson, '76; Dr. Dana Fowlkes, '77; Dr. Alan Guerci, '76; and Dr. William Rodney, '76.
During the program, the president and the president-elect of the WMC Alumni Association, Dr. Paul Miskovitz,'75, and Dr. Thomas McGovern, '74, presented the 2002 Honorary Fellowship Awards to Dr. Warren Johnson, the B.H. Kean Professor of Tropical Medicine and chief of the Division of International Medicine and Infectious Diseases, and Dr. James Smith, clinical professor of medicine.
Dr. Warren Johnson
Dr. Warren Johnson attended Carroll College in Wautesha, Wisconsin and graduated with a B.S. (magna cum laude) in 1958. He went on to Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, where he received his M.D. in 1962. A true Medical Center veteran, Dr. Johnson completed his internship and residency in medicine at The New York Hospital (196201969), with a brief hiatus as an internist in Korea with the United States Air Force (1964-1966). When he returned to the U.S. in 1966, he once again joined the Medical Center as a fellow and later as an instructor in infectious diseases at Cornell. In 1975, he spent a year as a visiting associate professor at The Rockefeller University, and then returned to Cornell as professor of medicine. In 1990, Dr. Johnson became the B.H. Kean Professor of Tropical Medicine at Cornell University Medical College, and in 1995, he was appointed chief of the Division of International Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Cornell.
A maverick in the field of international medicine, Dr. Johnson has received a multitude of honors, including being named a diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine and a Josiah Macy, Jr. Foundation Faculty Scholar. He is the recipient of the MERIT Award of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Distinguished Alumnus Award, Carroll College; Brazilian Society of Infectious Diseases Award; and the Emilio Ribas Medal of Infectious Diseases Award, to name a few.
Dr. James Smith
Dr. James Smith received his M.D. (cum laude) from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1960. He completed an internship and residency in medicine at the New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center (1960-1962), after which he served as assistant chief of medicine at the United States Army Station Hospital in Germany.
(from left): Dr. Paul Miskovitz,'75, president of the WMC Alumni Association, presents a 2002 Honorary Fellowship Award to Dr. James Smith, clinical professor of medicine.
Dr. Smith returned to Cornell in 1964 and has been clinical professor of medicine at Weill Cornell and attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital since 1982. He also maintains an appointment as attending physician at the Hospital for Special Surgery. Dr. Smith has received numerous awards and honors throughout his illustrious career. As a medical student, he was a member of Alpha Omega Alpha. He is also a recipient of the Edward Livingston Trudeau Senior Teaching Award; the James Alexander Miller Teaching Grant of the New York Tuberculosis and Health Association; the National Leadership Award of the American Lung Association; and the Life and Breath Award of the American Lung Association. He has been listed among "The Best Medical Specialists in North America," "The Best Doctors in New York" and "The Best Doctors in America." Dr. Smith has consulted at the Will Rogers Institute, the Burke Foundation, and is a chairman of the Medical Advisory Council of the Cystic Fibrosis Association.
Immediately following "Technology and Medicine," Dean Gotto hosted a luncheon, at which he gave the State of the Medical College address. The WMC Alumni Association and The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center Alumni Council held their biennial business meetings and announced their new slate of officers.
The Department of Surgery hosted the afternoon CME program titled "Technology and Surgery," with Dr. Jeffrey Milsom, chief of colon and rectal surgery and professor of surgery; Dr. Dennis Fowler, director of minimal access surgery and the Leon C. Hirsch Professor of Clinical Surgery; Dr. Rache Simmons, associate professor of surgery; and Dr. E. Darracott Vaughan, the James J. Colt Professor of Urology in Surgery and chairman emeritus of the Department of Urology, made a moving memorial to the late Victor Marshall.
October 12
Dr. Herbert Pardes hosted a breakfast gathering for alumni at which he gave a State of the Hospital address at the Griffis Faculty Club.
The CME program ended that Saturday with a panel discussion, "Mending the Brain: Minding Our Ethics," sponsored by the Center Alumni Council (CAC). Panelists included Dr. Jamshid Ghajar, '81; Dr. Robert Michels; Dr. Nicholas Schiff, '92; and Dr. David Sibersweig, '86.
Dr. W. Shain Schley, chairman of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, presented the CAC's Distinguished Achievement Award to Dr. Albert J. Stunkard, professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
Dr. Albert Stunkard
A pioneer in obesity treatment, Dr. Albert Stunkard is a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he founded the Weight and Eating Disorders Program, of which he is currently emeritus director.
Dr. Stunkard received his B.S. from Yale University in 1943 and an M.D. from Columbia University in 1945. He completed his residency in psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University in 1951 and went on to postdoctoral training at Johns Hopkins and Columbia University. He also completed his residency and was a research fellow in medicine and psychiatry at Cornell University Medical College from 1953 to 1957. From 1955 to 1957, he also served as an assistant physician in the Department at Psychiatry.
(from left) Dr. W. Shain Schley, chairman of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, presented the CAC's Distinguished Achievement Award to Dr. Albert J. Stunkard, professor of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.
One of his major research interests is genetic influences on obesity in childhood and among the Old Order Amish. The author of nearly 400 publications, Dr. Stunkard's research has been supported for 40 years by the National Institutes of Health. He has served as past president of the American Association of Chairmen of Departments of Psychiatry; the Association for Research in Nervous and Mental Diseases; the American Psychosomatic Society; the Society of Behavioral Medicine; and the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research.
Dr. Stunkard is the recipient of several awards, including the Joseph B. Goldberger Award in Clinical Nutrition (AMA); an honorary M.D. from the University of Edinburgh; membership in the Order of Leopold II (Belgium); Lifetime Achievement Award and Distinguished Service Award (American Psychiatric Association); and the Thomas William Salmon Medal of the New York Academy of Medicine, which he received for his notable contributions to the advancement of psychiatry.
Recipients of the CAC Distinguished Housestaff Award
50th Reunion Class: 1951 and 1952
Alexa Adams, M.D. (Pediatrics)
Anna Grattan, M.D. (Pediatrics)
Nina Shaikh-Naidu, M.D. (Plastic Surgery)
Sandra Park, M.D. (Psychiatry)
Gonzalo Bearman, M.D. (Public Health)
Nathalie Nguyen, M.D. (Radiation Oncology)
Keith Hentel, M.D. (Radiology)
Damon Noto, M.D. (Rehabilitation Medicine)
Michael Weyant, M.D. (Surgery)
Xun-Rong Luo, Ph.D. (Transplantation Medicine & Extracorporeal Therapy)
Jennifer Tash, M.D. (Urology)
Marcus Gutzler, M.D. (Anesthesiology)
Alistair Phillips, M.D. (Cardiothoracic Surgery)
Andrew Alexis, M.D. (Dermatology)
Robert Svarney, D.M.D. (Dentistry and Maxillofacial Surgery)
Amy Mekler, M.D. (Medicine)
Bernardo Liberato, M.D. (Neurology)
David Sandberg, M.D. (Neurological Surgery)
Kathleen Lin, M.D. (Obstetrics and Gynecology)
Mani H. Zadeh, M.D. (Otorhinolaryngology)
Andrew Pearle, M.D. (Orthopaedic Surgery)
Elizabeth Hyjek, M.D. (Pathology)