Third Annual Drs. Ruth and Ludlow Creary Leadership Lecture featured Dr. Patrice Harris
This year’ s third annual Drs. Ruth and Ludlow Creary Lecture, broadcast via Zoom, featured Dr. Patrice Harris, immediate past president of the AMA. Her topic, Strengthening the Health Care Safety Net in Los Angeles, was timely and wellreceived by those in attendance. Co-sponsors were the CDU COM and the Urban Health Institute.
In her opening, Dean Prothrow-Stith acknowledged the many accomplishments of Dr. Harris and saluted the Crearys for their support of the University over the years. The Creary Family Foundation offers over a dozen scholarships to highly qualified students in need of financial assistance. The Foundation is also a strong supporter of the planned new on-campus medical school.
Dr. Ludlow Creary’ s service to the community began in 1971, when he and fellow physician Dr. George Jackson, Sr. spearheaded the opening of the historic West Adams Hospital in Los Angeles. The pioneering facility was the first of its kind to be owned and operated by Back physicians in California, providing more than 1,000 jobs to the minority community.
At the same time, Dr. Creary was involved in the creation of Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Dr. Creary spent more than 25 years at the hospital and assisted in the founding of a Specialty Board in Family Medicine which provided primary health care to tens of thousands of patients in Watts-Willowbrook and surrounding communities.
Dr. Ruth Creary says the importance of giving back to the community is something she learned at an early age. After completing her Master of Arts and Ph. D. in developmental psychology at the University of Illinois, she worked at the Central City Community Mental Health Center in Los Angeles.
She next served as the Executive Director of the South-Central Los Angeles Regional Center for Developmental Disabilities for more than 12 years. She was also the Director of Residential Services at the Dubnoff Center for Child Development in North Hollywood.
Dr. Patrice Harris was an excellent choice of keynote speaker, having overcome great challenges since growing up in Bluefield, WVA. She has been a leader in times of crisis and transition, and has been in the thick of important issues for many years.
In her opening, she expressed her appreciation in being able to lead one or another issue or cause every day. It gives one a front row sear when things are good, she said, particulary when it is time to point out that people don’ t have equitable access to quality health care. Partnerships with allies and teamwork are invaluable tools in times of need. It is important to hold people accountable, and speak truth to power.
Her concept of leading is to have a vision for the future in order to serve as a strong advocate. Critical to success in such efforts is the need to be focused and engaged in the work. Her experience as a practicing psychiatrist with expertise as a patient advocate, and as a leader in the APA as well as the AMA has been
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