Medical school taught Dr. John Rich how to deal with physical trauma in a city hospital, but not with the fact that young black men were daily shot, stabbed and beaten. His new book is Dr. Rich's account of his personal search to find sense in the juxtaposition of his life and theirs.  Dr. Rich received the 2006 MacArthur Fellowship and was recently elected to the Institute of Medicine for helping to break the cycle of violence in our cities.

Dr. David Barton Smith, a professor of health management and policy, examines the underlying structural problems that have produced disparities in treatment, escalating costs, unsafe and inadaquete care, the demoralization of committed health care professionals and the calls for reform in his new book this month. Dr. Smith has extensive experience as an educator, researcher and consultant in health care policies and has authored additional books on this topic.

Dr. Sandra Bloom, a professor of health management and policy at the School of Public Health, was invited this month to serve on the Child Welfare Advisory Board for the City of Philadelphia’s Department of Human Services. The appointment is for a one-year term.