COMMENCEMENT SPEAKER 2008

The Harvard School of Public Health is pleased to announce that Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg, President of the Institute of Medicine, has agreed to be the School's Commencement speaker.

From 1997 to 2001, Dr. Fineberg served as Provost of Harvard University. Prior to serving as Provost, Dr. Fineberg was Dean of the Harvard School of Public Health for 13 years. He is currently Professor of Health Policy and Management, Emeritus, in the HSPH Department of Health Policy and Management.

He has devoted most of his academic career to the fields of health policy and medical decision making. His past research has focused on the process of policy development and implementation, assessment of medical technology, evaluation and use of vaccines, and dissemination of medical innovations.

Dr. Fineberg helped found and served as president of the Society for Medical Decision Making and also served as a consultant to the World Health Organization. At the Institute of Medicine, he has chaired and served on a number of panels dealing with health policy issues, ranging from AIDS to new medical technology. He also served as a member of the Public Health Council of Massachusetts (1976-1979), as chairman of the Health Care Technology Study Section of the National Center for Health Services Research (1982-1985), and as president of the Association of Schools of Public Health (1995-1996).

Dr. Fineberg is co-author of the books Clinical Decision Analysis, Innovators in Physician Education, and The Epidemic that Never Was, an analysis of the controversial federal immunization program against swine flu in 1976. He has co-edited several books on such diverse topics as AIDS prevention, vaccine safety, and understanding risk in society. He has also authored numerous articles published in professional journals and is the recipient of five honorary degrees. Dr. Fineberg earned his bachelor's and doctoral degrees from Harvard University.