Paul Farmer

physician, anthropologist

Paul received his MD from Harvard Medical School and his PhD in anthropology from Harvard University. His years of academic training went far beyond libraries, classrooms and hospital clerkships. While still a medical student, Paul and colleagues founded Partners In Health, a nonprofit organization committed to providing health care to communities in the world's most remote regions. Today Partners In Health is rural Haiti's largest health care provider and serves millions of individuals and families in ten countries, including poorer areas within the United States. Through launching innovative community-based treatments for life-threatening diseases, Paul and his collaborators have demonstrated that quality health care can be delivered effectively to undeserved and resource-poor regions. Paul is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Margaret Mead Award from the American Anthropological Association and the Outstanding International Physician (Nathan Davis) Award from the American Medical Association. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences and has recently been elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.