Dr. Victor Dzau, President of the National Academy of Medicine gave the keynote address at Commencement exercises for the Medical School of the University of Texas Southwestern on May 7, 2019. He spoke about the changing landscape of health and medicine and the social responsibilities of being a healthcare provider.
“We are the ones who have to incorporate all of the upcoming changes into our daily practices. We are responsible for making sure that our patients benefit, and indeed, we must also examine the ethical and societal issues that all of this change will bring,” said Dzau. “The best clinicians, researchers, and public health professionals take an expansive view of their role. They reach out to others and work together within and beyond their own professions. They use their resources, their position, and their influence to ensure more justice and fairness in our world.”
The 2019 graduating Class of the Medical School are the first students to complete the revised curriculum, which allows medical students to step into hospitals and clinics earlier in their educational journey and better trains students to be knowledgeable, confident, and forward-looking physicians. This year’s class includes 27 students graduating with distinction, an Olympic level athlete, a former F-16 pilot for the Air Force, an advocate for foster children, one who danced with a team on America’s Got Talent, and one who launched a group to reach out to disadvantaged elementary schools to motivate them to pursue careers in medicine.
Dr. Daniel K. Podolsky, President of UT Southwestern, will confer degrees on all of the graduates.
