Provost Lecture Series

Provost Lecture Series

The world of health care is facing unprecedented social, political and financial challenges.

One of the most proactive and productive things we can do in this era of change is to learn from each other and other leaders with knowledge of the current issues that scientists, educators, health care providers and staff members of an academic medical center may face.

The Provost's Lecture Series was created to invite experts to our community to share their unique perspectives at UTMB, to engage us in discussion and inspire us as we work together to improve health here and around the globe.

Sponsored by the Libbie Moody
and Clark Thompson Endowment

Past Speakers

Shanafelt_Tait_D_Current Headshot Tait Shanafelt, MD

chief wellness officer, stanford medicine

director, stanford wellmd center

Tuesday, March 19, 2019 | Flier (PDF)

Dr. Shanafelt received his medical degree from the University of Colorado. Clinically, Dr. Shanafelt’s focus is caring for patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. In addition to his leukemia research, he is an international thought leader and researcher in the field of well-being and its implications for quality of care. Dr. Shanafelt is the Director of the Stanford WellMD Center and previously served as the founding director of the Mayo Clinic Department of Medicine Program on Physician Well-being. His research in this area has involved physicians at all stages of their career from medical school to practice and has included several multi-center and national studies.

Provost Lecture Series

Ricardo Pietrobon, MD, PhD, MBA

Ricardo Pietrobon, MD, PhD, MBA

Chief Executive Officer, SporeData Inc.

Thursday, April 13, 2017 | Video | Invitation (PDF)

Dr. Pietrobon is Chief Executive Officer of SporeData, Inc., a start-up company focused on data science applied to the integration among translational research, health care administration, education and quality of care. SporeData provides high-quality statistical analyses and methodologies for clinical research data while ensuring industry, government and academic standards and compliance.

An adjunct professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, he has published more than 275 peer-reviewed publications in areas related to data science applied to clinical research and health care. He is currently a reviewer for the Clinical and Translational Science Award and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute programs.
Ross McKinney, Jr., MD

Ross McKinney, Jr., MD

Chief Scientific Officer, Association of American Medical Colleges

PDF Invitation | Video | Thursday, March 30, 2017

In his role as chief scientific officer, Ross McKinney Jr., MD leads an array of AAMC programs that support all aspects of medical research and training. He also represents the AAMC nationally on issues related to research and science policy, administration, and workforce development, and education and training.

Dr. McKinney joined the AAMC in 2016 after serving as a member of the Duke faculty since 1985. During his time at Duke, he was director of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, vice dean for research at Duke University School of Medicine, and director of the Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities, and History of Medicine. Among his career highlights, Dr. McKinney was first author of the key Phase I and II studies on Zidovudine (AZT) use in children, and he conducted research on the natural history, prevention, and treatment of pediatric HIV disease.

Dr. McKinney received his bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College in 1975. He earned his medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and completed his internship and residency in Pediatrics, and fellowship in Pediatric Infectious Diseases, at Duke University Medical Center.
Christina Maslach, PhD

Christina Maslach, PhD

Professor Emerita of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley

Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018 | Flier (PDF)

Watch the video from Dr. Maslach's presentation.

Dr. Maslach received her AB from Harvard and her PhD from Stanford. She is widely recognized as a pioneer in job burnout research. Her numerous publications include “The Truth About Burnout” and award-winning articles such as her longitudinal research on early burnout predictors, which was honored in 2012 as one of the 50 most outstanding articles published by the top 300 management journals in the world. She received a lifetime career achievement award from the Tenth International Conference on Work, Stress, and Health. She is the founding co-editor of the e-journal, Burnout Research. At the University of California at Berkeley, Professor Emerita Maslach has served as Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and twice as the Chair of the Faculty Senate. Her Berkeley honors include the Distinguished Teaching Award, the Berkeley Faculty Service Award and the Berkeley Citation (the university’s highest honor). Dr. Maslach received the national “Professor of the Year” award for her record of outstanding teaching and research.
Graham McMahon, MD, MMSC

Graham McMahon, MD, MMSC

President and CEO, Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME)

Wednesday, May 9, 2018 | Flier (PDF)

Watch the video from Dr. McMahon's presentation.
As president and CEO of the ACCME, an accrediting organization that leverages education to drive quality in health care, Dr. McMahon is working to transform how continuing medical education (CME) is delivered and used to adapt to our changing clinical environments and needs. He calls upon clinicians to reflect on their own skills to develop an intentional plan for their own skill development. He also encourages health care leaders to recognize the power and capacity of accredited CME to address challenges in their professional environments — from clinician well-being to national imperatives for better health, better care and lower costs — and to support their staff by making space and time for learning that restores joy in practice and helps clinicians thrive.