AMA President-Elect at Springfield College
to Discuss Primary Health Care Crisis, Role of Prevention
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., Jan. 25, 2007 -- As Western Massachusetts experiences the increasing national shortage of physicians, Dr. Ronald M. Davis, president-elect of the American Medical Association, will speak to Springfield College students who are preparing for careers in health and medicine. The program will be open to the public on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2007, at 10 a.m., in Appleton Auditorium, Fuller Arts Center, on the campus.
Davis, a preventive medicine specialist from East Lansing, Mich., has been a prominent voice on public health issues, including tobacco, obesity, dietary supplements, media violence, safety belts, and immunizations. He will become AMA president in June 2007.
Davis will speak to students in Springfield College’s School of Health Sciences & Rehabilitation Studies about changing and growing roles of professionals in preventive and primary health-care. More than 570 students at the college major in physician assistant studies, physical or occupational therapy, rehabilitation and disability studies, emergency medical services management, and pre-medicine.
According to William Susman, dean of the Springfield College School of Health Sciences & Rehabilitation Studies, “Dr. Davis’ insights are especially valuable now as all levels of providers are becoming more involved in preventive health-care. The shortage of primary care physicians has increased the roles of professionals in the fields for which we educate students. As our health care system becomes more effective in preventive care, we will ease the primary care crisis. This program promises to be an engaging public discussion with the incoming leader of the nation’s largest and most influential physician organization.”
Davis’ career as a public health official includes positions as medical director of the Michigan Department of Public Health and director of the Centers for Disease Control’s Office on Smoking and Health. Currently, he is director of the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.
Davis is a graduate of the University of Michigan. At the University of Chicago, he completed a master’s degree in public policy and a medical degree at the Pritzker School of Medicine. He is board certified in preventive medicine.
Springfield College’s School of Health Sciences & Rehabilitation Sciences offers bachelor’s and master’s degree programs. It also offers a post-professional program in occupational therapy and a six and a half-year combined bachelor’s/doctoral program in physical therapy. The college has agreements with several medical schools that guarantee acceptance of its qualified graduates. Earlier this year, the college launched a major renovation of its Schoo Hall, transforming it into a state-of-the-art science teaching facility. Schoo Hall reopened for classes on Jan. 17, 2007.
Springfield College students of health sciences serve internships or perform volunteer work related to their studies at Baystate and Mercy Medical centers, Providence and Shriner’s hospitals, state agencies, schools, health centers and clinics, insurance companies, and other venues. The college plans to continue to expand internships and learning through service.
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