This November, the Gerontological Health Section (GHS) will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Philip G. Weiler Award for Leadership in Aging and Public Health.  Formerly the Key Pharmaceutical Leadership Award, in 1984 GHS recognized T. Franklin Williams, MD, as the first recipient.  The award recognizes the best of past and present leadership concerned with ensuring the highest quality of life for our older population.  Recipients are individuals and organizations who have provided leadership in the field of gerontological health, and include, but are not limited to, public officials, policy-makers, practitioners, teachers, and researchers.

In 2004, the Key Award was renamed the Philip G. Weiler Leadership Award in Aging & Public Health, in recognition of Philip G. Weiler.  Dr. Weiler was a UC Davis Professor of Medicine and a founder of GHS.   He served on the Governing Council and Executive Board of APHA and was a Key Leadership Award recipient in 1985.  Dr. Weiler served as Chief Deputy Director for Preventive Health Services in the California State Department of Health, establishing one of the first adult day health centers in the country, co-authoring the first book on how to establish and manage such centers, and helping develop the Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnostic and Treatment Centers.  His training and passions reflected Dr. Weiler’s lifelong interest in bringing important elements from social sciences, policy and planning, and public health to his work in geriatrics.

The 25th recipient of the Award is Connie Evashwick, ScD.  Dr. Evashwick is Professor of Health Management and Policy and Community Health at the School of Public Health at Saint Louis University. Dr. Evashwick holds a bachelor's and a master's degree from Stanford University and a master's and doctoral degree from the Harvard School of Public Health.  She has many years of experience with the continuum of care and long-term care delivery systems, as well as a more recent interest in community benefit.   Dr. Evashwick’s multifaceted career has included positions in academia, consulting, and direct operations management.  She has been vice president of long-term care for two major health care systems and consulted with health systems, hospitals, and long-term care organizations across the nation.  Dr. Evashwick has been active in professional societies in the health administration and aging fields, including being a Regent and Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and being chair of the APHA Gerontological Health Section.  Dr. Evashwick has held an endowed chair at California State University Long Beach and served as the Dean of the SLU School of Public Health.  She has authored over 112 publications, including 12 books.  She has generated and managed over $9 million in grants from private foundations and federal, state, and local government agencies.  

In addition to Drs. Williams and Weiler, previous recipients are:

1986       Anne W. Zimmer, MS

1987       Stanley J. Brody, JD, MSW

1988       Robert L. Kane, MD

1989       Pearl S. German, ScD

1990       James G. Zimmer, MD, DTPH (Lond)

1991       Laurence G. Branch, PhD

1992       Robert H. Binstock, PhD

1993       Joan F. Van Nostrand, DPA

1994       Joshua Wiener, PhD

1995       Bruce C. Vladeck, PhD

1996       Terrie T. Wetle, PhD

1997       Judith Feder, PhD

1998       Robyn I. Stone, DrPH

1999       Dennis L. Kodner, PhD

2000       James J. Callahan, Jr., PhD

2001       John W. Rowe, MD

2002       Retirement Research Foundation      

              Marilyn Hennessy, President

2003       Susan L. Hughes, DSW        

2005       Richard H. Fortinsky, PhD

2006       Nancy Persily, MPH

2007       Honorable Barbara B. Kennelly

2008       Caroll L. Estes, PhD

The Award will be presented at the GHS Awards Ceremony, Monday, Nov. 9, 2009, at the APHA Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.  We hope you will be able to join us in celebrating the leadership of our current, as well as previous recipients.