University Hospitals Health Services Research Center 2026-2027 Distinguished Speakers

Series: Bringing Together Leading Voices Shaping the Future of Healthcare

UH Research & Education Update

The University Hospitals Health Services Research Center (UH HSRC) is pleased to announce the 2026–2027 cohort of the Distinguished Speaker Series, featuring nationally and internationally recognized leaders whose scholarship, innovation and leadership are advancing health, healthcare and public policy. The cohort includes pioneering physicians, scientists, public health leaders and policy experts whose work has transformed healthcare delivery, informed policy, advanced population health outcomes and deepened understanding of environmental health, maternal and child health, mental health and overdose prevention across the United States and around the world.

Led by Samudragupta Bora, PhD, Founding Director of the UH HSRC, the Distinguished Speaker Series reflects the Center’s commitment to convening influential thinkers and leaders whose work advances health and wellbeing through discovery, innovation and action.

“What excites me most about this year’s cohort is that every speaker has changed the way people think about an important issue in health or healthcare,” says Dr. Bora. “Each has challenged conventional wisdom in meaningful ways and helped move their field in a new direction.”

The 2026–2027 series will explore many of the defining issues of the twenty-first century, including healthcare quality and safety, health equity, social and environmental determinants of health, public health policy, mental health, substance use and overdose prevention and health across the life course. While the topics span diverse disciplines, they are united by a common purpose: identifying practical pathways toward healthier populations, stronger healthcare systems and more resilient communities.

Collectively, the 2026–2027 cohort includes leaders whose work has influenced health policy, transformed healthcare delivery, advanced public health practice, redefined academic medicine and improved population health outcomes across the United States and beyond.

2026–2027 Distinguished Speakers (in alphabetical order)

Bernadette Boden-Albala, MPH, DrPH
University of California, Irvine
Dean, Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health
Professor of Health, Society, & Behavior
Professor of Neurology

Francesca Beaudoin, MD, MS, PhD
Brown University
Dean, School of Public Health
Professor of Epidemiology and Emergency Medicine

Kari Nadeau, MD, PhD
University of California, Los Angeles
Dean, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

Marcella Alsan, MD, MPH, PhD
Stanford University
Annie and Ned Lamont Professor of International Studies
Professor of Economics
Senior Fellow, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research

Michael Lu, MD, MS, MPH
University of California, Berkeley
Dean, School of Public Health

Nabarun Dasgupta, MPH, PhD
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Gillings Innovation Fellow, Gillings School of Global Public Health
Senior Scientist, Injury Prevention Research Center

Perry Halkitis, MPH, MS, PhD
Rutgers University
Dean, School of Public Health
Hunterdon Professor of Public Health & Health Equity
Distinguished Professor of Biostatistics & Epidemiology
Director, Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies

Robert Wachter, MD
University of California, San Francisco
Holly Smith Distinguished Professor in Science and Medicine
Lynne and Marc Benioff Endowed Chair in Hospital Medicine
Professor and Chair, Department of Medicine

Rosalind Wright, MD, MPH
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Dean, Public Health and Chair, Department of Public Health
Horace W. Goldsmith Professor in Life Course Health Research
Co-Director, Institute for Exposomic Research

Vikram Patel, MBBS, PhD
Harvard University
Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Head, Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Professor, Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Behind the Distinguished Speaker Series

The Distinguished Speaker Series reflects months of careful planning and collaboration led by Dr. Bora and the UH HSRC programming team. Each January, the team begins identifying emerging issues, transformative research and leaders whose work is reshaping the future of medicine, public health and healthcare delivery.

Drawing on major scientific advances, emerging public health challenges, national conversations, prestigious award recipients and National Academy of Medicine inductees and other recognized leaders, the team develops an extensive list of potential speakers. Months are then devoted to studying their scholarship, public presentations and professional contributions to better understand their perspectives, achievements and influence.

“We are constantly searching for leaders whose ideas challenge conventional thinking, whose work has meaningful societal impact and whose perspectives inspire us to see familiar problems through a different lens,” says Dr. Bora.

As the selection process advances, equal attention is given to creating a coherent and balanced program. As Dr. Bora adds, “A successful speaker series is more than a collection of distinguished names. We spend a great deal of time thinking about how the speakers fit together, what perspectives they bring and what our audience can learn from those connections. That’s what turns a series of lectures into a meaningful conversation.”

Once the cohort is finalized, the six-member programming team begins coordinating schedules, developing promotional materials and preparing for the year ahead while simultaneously concluding the current season’s programming.

“The announcement reflects months of collaboration behind the scenes,” says Dr. Bora. “Our team brings extraordinary dedication, creativity and attention to detail to every aspect of the series and their commitment is what makes a program of this caliber possible.”

From September 2026 through June 2027, each speaker will present a lecture focused on their area of expertise during a free virtual event open to the public. Designed to engage researchers, clinicians, educators, trainees, students, policymakers and community members, the series creates opportunities for learning, reflection and meaningful dialogue around the ideas shaping the future of health and healthcare.

The 2026–2027 Distinguished Speaker Series continues the UH HSRC’s tradition of convening influential leaders whose work transcends disciplines and improves lives across communities. Through these conversations, participants will engage with some of the most important ideas shaping the future of healthcare, public policy and population health while exploring new opportunities to create healthier, more equitable and resilient communities.