Medicine Grand Rounds Presents: Raj Panjabi, MD, Presenting the “Alan Jacobs Humanism in Medicine Memorial Lecture.”

Please note this lecture will take place on Wednesday, October 7. 

Raj Panjabi, MD, is CEO of Last Mile Health and assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and the division of global health equity at Brigham & Women’s Hospital. Panjabi grew up in Liberia and fled Liberia’s civil war with his family when he was nine years old, becoming a refugee in the United States of America. He returned to Liberia as a medical student and then in 2007 co-founded Last Mile Health, a non-profit organization working to save lives in the world’s most remote communities.

The Alan Jacobs Memorial Lecture

Alan Jacobs passed away in February 2016 from complications of cardiac amyloidosis. Prior to his diagnosis, Alan led a successful career in film spanning over 40 years. Beginning in the 1960s, he produced documentary films supporting the civil rights and feminist movements and critiquing the Vietnam War. Alan held executive positions at the Trans-Lux Corporation and Hallmark Entertainment Company, where he produced films for television; and board positions at both Sundance Film Festival, of which he was a founding member, and The American Film Institute. In his later years, Alan taught cinematic history and film production at California State University, Long Beach. As impactful as his professional accomplishments was Alan’s character. Those fortunate to know him enjoyed his intellect, warmth, and humor.

Alan spent his last years in North Carolina and was a patient at UNC Hospitals. Throughout his illness Alan maintained an interest in the science of his condition and a firm belief in the importance of humanism in patient care, including end-of-life care. One of Alan’s final wishes was to establish a lectureship at the UNC School of Medicine to support the kind of compassionate care that he was so fortunate to receive.

The Department of Medicine is grateful for the generous donation by Alan’s family to establish the Alan Jacobs Memorial Lecture.  Alan’s wife, Lynn Goodpasture, and their daughter, Keelia Jacobs, wish to acknowledge and express their gratitude to Dr. Lee Berkowitz for his outstanding care of Alan.

rev 9.27