Donald Berwick: the Challenge of Change, the Direction of Change

The renowned Don Berwick, master storyteller, speaks to the 2015 Beyond Flexner Alliance Conference about professional identity formation and change in health and healthcare

Donald M. Berwick was President and CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) for nearly 20 years. In July 2010, President Obama appointed Dr. Berwick to the position of Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, a position he held until December 2011. He was formerly Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and Health Care Policy at the Harvard Medical School, and Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Berwick has served as vice chair of the US Preventive Services Task Force, the first “Independent Member” of the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees, and chair of the National Advisory Council of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. An elected member of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), Dr. Berwick served two terms on the IOM’s governing Council and was a member of the IOM’s Global Health Board. He served on President Clinton’s Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Healthcare Industry. He is a recipient of several awards and author of numerous articles and books, including Curing Health Care andEscape Fire.