News Release: Institute of Medicine of Chicago Recognizes 2026 Leadership Award Recipients

Excellence in Healthcare, Public Health and Population Health Awards

CHICAGO- It is with great pleasure that the Institute of Medicine of Chicago announces the recipients of its 2026 Annual Leadership Awards. These inspiring individuals will be honored at our Annual Leadership Awards & Annual Meeting, a signature gathering dedicated to advancing health equity and reducing healthcare disparities. More details and to register here>

The Annual Leadership Awards illuminate extraordinary accomplishments and the unwavering spirit needed to overcome challenges in healthcare and public health. With a focus on excellence across healthcare, public health, and population health, these honorees serve as beacons of inspiration, guiding us through a continually evolving landscape.

We warmly welcome you to join us in celebrating and uplifting these extraordinary leaders.

2026 Leadership Awards

IOMC Humanitarian Global Health Award  

Mildred Olivier, MD   

The Portes & IOMC Award for Excellence in Prevention of Disease  

Michael Rakotz, MD                               

                                                                      

IOMC Innovation in Health Care / Health Care Delivery  

Pamela Ganschow, MD - Individual                                                                     

Debra Kissen, PhD, MHSA - Organization                           

 

IOMC Award for Public Service    

Sandra Wilks, RN, MSN, CNE

                                    

IOMC Lifetime Achievement Award  

William McDade, MD   

The 2026 Leadership Awards & Annual Meeting is a joyful celebration of the Institute’s ongoing dedication to health equity—honoring our journey, our achievements, and our dreams for the future. We invite you to be part of this inspiring moment, as we come together to spark social change and foster a world with fewer healthcare disparities. We will honor the new Board of Governors, express gratitude to the 2025-2026 Board of Governors for their dedication, reflect on the past year’s successes, and look ahead with hope and determination.

We are honored to welcome our keynote speaker, Dr. Aron Sousa, MD, FACP, President of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science and Fellow of IOMC. Dr. Sousa’s presentation, “Universities as Engines for Community Health,” weaves together his decades of community-based work in Michigan with Rosalind Franklin University’s trailblazing efforts to advance health. From the university’s student-run Interprofessional Community Clinic and free Community Care Connection to the Children’s Advocacy Center Medical Clinic—the only one of its kind in Illinois—Dr. Sousa highlights how academic leadership can spark transformation. His keynote shines a spotlight on innovative cash allowance programs such as Rx Kids, which provide universal support for mothers and babies to improve maternal and newborn health. This creative, collaborative approach exemplifies the power of partnerships among universities, public health, philanthropy, and government to ignite meaningful, community-centered change.

Together, we will express heartfelt appreciation to Dr. Lorenzo Pence, DO, and the 2025-2026 Board of Governors for their leadership and lasting impact. We are delighted to welcome Dr. Archana Chatterjee, MD, PhD, as our incoming 2026-2027 President, along with the new Board of Governors. Join us as we set a hopeful, collaborative agenda for the year ahead—united in our commitment to advancing health equity and reducing disparities for all.

We warmly invite everyone to share in this special gathering. The evening promises friendly connections, a delightful dinner, inspiring awards, and joyful moments together. Learn more about the awards here.

We wish to thank our sponsors for their support: Golden Square, and Labcorp. Our meeting partners include Health News Illinois and Cannon. For more information on sponsorship, the convening and the Institute’s history of accomplishments, visit this www.iomc.org.

The Institute of Medicine of Chicago (IOMC), since 1915, is an independent 501c3 non-profit organization of distinguished leaders in the health field who collaborate to improve the health of the public. Drawing upon the expertise of a diverse membership and other regional leaders, the IOMC addresses critical health issues through a range of interdisciplinary approaches, including education, research, communication of trusted information, and community engagement. With the public's health at its core, IOMC is building new programs and services to meet better the needs of its members and the Chicago, Counties and the State of Illinois community. Visit www.iomc.org.  

More details and to register for the 2026 Leadership Awards & Annual Meeting here>

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Even among experts, there is no single, universally accepted way to diagnose the condition—whether it should be based on body size, fat distribution, metabolic consequences, or some combination of all 3. [JAMA Network]

But as global prevalence continues to rise, with more than a billion people now estimated to be living with obesity, and as increasingly effective weight loss medications reshape the treatment landscape, accurate diagnosis is more important than ever. How obesity is defined can influence who qualifies for treatment, what insurers cover, and how clinicians prioritize care.

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Last year, a global commission convened by editors of The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology published a new diagnostic framework that moves beyond body mass index (BMI) by incorporating more refined assessments of excess adiposity and distinguishing between preclinical and clinical obesity. Rather than advancing the field toward consensus, however, the proposal has reignited debate among experts.

At the center of the discord is, interestingly, an area of agreement: a broad recognition that BMI, a metric that has been used for decades to estimate a person’s body fat based on weight and height alone, is insufficient.

Although the simplicity of BMI has cemented its position as the dominant obesity screening tool, some experts have deemed it too blunt an instrument for the examination room, where clinical care demands greater precision based on a patient’s specific profile.

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The World Health Organization's annual health statistics report explains that less international aid from wealthy countries has disrupted medical services and weakened disease surveillance. This, along with the lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, is contributing to many dying of preventable causes, CIDRAP reports. [KFF] 

CIDRAP: Fragile Progress On Global Public Health Under Threat

The World Health Organization's (WHO’s) annual health statistics report paints a sobering picture. Too many people are dying of preventable causes, while hard-fought gains are losing steam or even reversing, said Yukiko Nakatani, MD, PhD, the WHO's assistant director‑general for health systems, access and data. (Boden, 5/14)  [CIDRAP-Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy - Research and Innovation Office, University of Minnesota, MN]

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Some people who may have been exposed to a hantavirus that can transmit from human to human returned to the U.S. before the outbreak aboard a cruise ship was known. [MEDPAGE TODAY]

This includes seven Americans who disembarked the ship on the remote island of St. Helena on April 24. MedPage Today broke that story last week. 

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It also includes at least nine Americans who were on the same plane from St. Helena to Johannesburg as the widow of the first cruise ship passenger who died. That woman was symptomatic during the flight, and died not long after landing in South Africa.

State health officials have contacted these people and have advised them to quarantine as best they can, with home monitoring and daily symptom and fever checks. According to CDC's interim guidance, they are all high risk, as they were either on the ship as of April 6, when the first patient died, or were seated close to the symptomatic passenger on the plane.

Some people who may have been exposed to a hantavirus that can transmit from human to human returned to the U.S. before the outbreak aboard a cruise ship was known.

This includes seven Americans who disembarked the ship on the remote island of St. Helena on April 24. MedPage Today broke that story last week.

It also includes at least nine Americans who were on the same plane from St. Helena to Johannesburg as the widow of the first cruise ship passenger who died. That woman was symptomatic during the flight, and died not long after landing in South Africa.

State health officials have contacted these people and have advised them to quarantine as best they can, with home monitoring and daily symptom and fever checks. According to CDC's interim guidance, they are all high risk, as they were either on the ship as of April 6, when the first patient died, or were seated close to the symptomatic passenger on the plane.

More>

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Physician burnout continues to decline across the U.S., a bright spot for an occupation plagued by heavy workloads, pervasive stress and high stakes. But the improvement is not equal across medical specialties, according to new data from the American Medical Association. [HealthcareDive and AMA]

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The AMA surveyed thousands of physicians and found that 41.9% reported experiencing a burnout symptom in 2025, down from 43.2% in 2024 and 48.2% in 2023. The decline likely reflects employer efforts to reduce burnout, including by increasing job satisfaction, the medical association said.

However, burnout rates vary significantly across specialties, and tend to be higher among doctors employed by hospitals, suggesting health systems could be doing more to ameliorate the phenomenon.

Physician burnout is a huge problem in U.S. healthcare. As doctors take on higher administrative burden and longer hours, the physical, spiritual and emotional toll is driving more to leave the field altogether, exacerbating America’s shortage of medical staff. Burnout is also tied to poorer quality of care and lower patient satisfaction.

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Discover Your Perfect Career Path – IOMC Job Career Center

You're busy - Let the Institute Help You 

Open to All - CV Reviews, Coaching and Interview Prep 

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• Complete Confidentiality
• Easily Launch Your Job Search
• Let Opportunities Come to You
• Connect with Qualified Opportunities
• Catch the Eye of Recruiters
• Showcase Your Expertise Across Multiple Platforms

Explore the Institute’s Job Career Center—over 5,000 opportunities waiting for you. 

How to Find Your Dream Job: 9 Career Path Exercises. 

Use these exercises to help you discover your dream job>

More resources here>

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Michael Reese Research and Education Foundation seeks several new Chicago-based board members to help the foundation survive and thrive into its next phase. We are looking for qualified, passionate leaders with an interest in Michael Reese's vision and an interest in healthcare, health equity, and innovation. We are looking for board members with all skill sets but have a particular interest in candidates with experience in finance/accounting, communications, and marketing.  

For more information, view listing on Idealist.org: 

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Despite ongoing efforts to improve maternal and infant health, socioeconomic disparities threaten to undermine population health gains and perpetuate cycles of disadvantage. Although studies have documented disparities by an individual’s poverty status for a range of health outcomes, no recent studies have documented such disparities in birth outcomes in the US.¹ Poverty increases for women around the time of birth, when nutrition and medical costs increase.² Socioeconomic adversities in the perinatal period, including poverty, can have lasting effects for the mother and newborn.^3,4 However, macroeconomic conditions and policies related to poverty and health may have changed the risk of poverty and the nature of its relationship to birth outcomes. This study examined longitudinal trends in birth outcomes by poverty status, using the only multistate surveillance system with detailed information on the prenatal and postpartum periods, the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), a long-running survey paused indefinitely by the federal government. These results inform policies and interventions to address maternal and infant health inequities. [JAMA  Pediatrics]

Set up free account if you or your institution if needed. 

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• Providing hospital-level care in patients’ homes was linked to better clinical outcomes, suggesting hospital-at-home programs could serve as a safe and efficient alternative to traditional inpatient care, according to a study published this week in JAMA Network Open. 
• Hospital at home was associated with decreased emergency department use within 30 days of discharge and lower in-hospital mortality, according to the research. But patients at hospital-at-home programs saw no significant difference in hospital readmissions within 30 days. 
• Additionally, adoption of hospital at home across the country is uneven, with few rural facilities participating, researchers wrote. The findings “underscore the need to address practical and implementation challenges to broaden equitable access,” they said.

More>

Outcomes Associated With Hospital at Home vs Traditional Inpatient Stay (Study) JAMA Network>

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Importance  Prepregnancy care and counseling optimize maternal health before conception to improve outcomes for mothers and infants. In the US, 66.4% of reproductive-aged women have at least 1 modifiable risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcomes. [JAMA]

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Conclusions and Relevance  Prepregnancy counseling and care reduce maternal morbidity and neonatal morbidity and mortality. Primary care–based discussion of reproductive goals, immunizations, screening for infections and substance use, and risk-reducing interventions such as folate supplementation can optimize outcomes in individuals contemplating pregnancy.

Full article>   

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