Dr. David Satcher Speaker Biography
16th US Surgeon General, Former & Founder of Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse College
Sworn in on February 13, 1998, Dr. David Satcher became the second person in history to ever hold the positions of Surgeon General and Assistant Secretary for Health simultaneously. He is director of The Satcher Health Leadership Institute, which was established in 2006 at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. The Institute’s mission is to develop a diverse group of public health leaders, foster and support leadership strategies, and influence policies toward the reduction—and, ultimately, the elimination—of disparities in health. The Institute’s programs reflect Dr. Satcher’s demonstrated track record in improving public health policy and his commitment to eliminating health disparities for underserved groups, such as minorities and the poor, and shedding light on neglected issues, such as mental and sexual health.
Surgeon General
Dr. Satcher was sworn in as the 16th Surgeon General of the United States in 1998. He also served as Assistant Secretary for Health in the Department of Health and Human Services from February 1998 to January 2001, making him only the second person in history to have held both positions simultaneously. His tenure of public service also includes serving as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and administrator of the Toxic Substances and Disease Registry from 1993 to 1998. He is the first person to have served as director of the CDC and then surgeon general of the United States.
Affiliations
In addition, Dr. Satcher has held top leadership positions at the Charles R. Drew University for Medicine and Science, Meharry Medical College, and the Morehouse School of Medicine. He has been a Macy Foundation fellow, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation clinical scholar, and a senior visiting fellow of the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Morehouse School of Medicine
Having also held the position of director of the National Center for Primary Care (NCPC) at the Morehouse School of Medicine from 2002 to 2004, Dr. Satcher currently occupies the Poussaint-Satcher-Cosby chair in mental health at the Morehouse School of Medicine. This reflects his long commitment to removing the stigma attached to mental illness, as evidenced by Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon, the first surgeon general’s report on mental health released during his tenure as surgeon general. As surgeon general and assistant secretary for health, Dr. Satcher led the department’s effort to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health, an initiative that was incorporated as one of the two major goals of Healthy People 2010. In his new book, My Quest for Health Equity: Notes on Learning While Leading (Health Equity in America), Dr. Satcher shares stories of leadership and lessons learned from his lifetime commitment to health equity.
Honors
Dr. Satcher has received over 40 honorary degrees and numerous distinguished honors including top awards from the National Medical Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Academy of Family Physicians; he is also the recipient of the Symbol of H.O.P.E. Award for health promotion and disease prevention. In 2005, Dr. Satcher was appointed to serve on the World Health Organization Commission on Social Determinants of Health.
Boards
Currently, Dr. Satcher serves on the Board of Directors of Johnson & Johnson, MetLife, and the CDC Foundation. He also serves locally on the board of United Way of Greater Atlanta and The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta.
Education
Dr. Satcher graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1963 and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He holds MD and PhD degrees from Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. He is a member of Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society and a fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Preventive Medicine, and the American College of Physicians. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, the 100 Black Men of Atlanta, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Alzheimer’s Awareness
Dr. Satcher is a strong advocate for raising Alzheimer’s awareness and research funding. He has both a professional and personal perspective on the issue, as his wife, Nola, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s almost 14 years ago. Having experienced the toll that the disease takes on families, Dr. Satcher works to provide support for those in similar situations by raising awareness and offering resources to caregivers.
A proponent of maintaining a healthy lifestyle through physical activity and good nutrition, Dr. Satcher is an avid runner, rower, and gardener.
16th US Surgeon General, Former Assistant Secretary for Health, Former Director of the CDC & Founder of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse College
Dr. David Satcher Speaking Topics
My Quest for Health Equity: Notes on Learning While Leading (Health Equity in America)
Dr. David Satcher is one of the most widely known and well-regarded physicians of our time. A former four-star admiral in the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, he served as the Assistant Secretary for Health, the Surgeon General of the United States, and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before founding the eponymous Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse College. At the core of his impact on public health, he is also a lifelong leader for civil rights and health equity. Born black and poor in the deep South, Dr. Satcher was a victim of an unjust health care system: he almost died of whooping cough at the age of two because Jim Crow laws meant that his black doctor could not admit him to a hospital. That experience was the first of many that shaped him as a leader and a healer deeply attuned to social inequity―someone who was determined to make a positive difference.
Politics, Opinions & Public Health
What Americans Can Do to Maintain Their Health
A Look at Alzheimer’s from a Doctor & a Caregiver
Dr. David Satcher Books
My Quest for Health Equity: Notes on Learning While Leading
Purchase BookDr. David Satcher Videos
Dr. David Satcher Speaker Testimonials
He was BETTER than AMAZING!!! He is such a wonderful, warm, brilliant and gracious man. Our thanks to you and to him for helping to make our meeting a stellar event!
- | Nunn Consulting Inc.
Dr. Satcher was fabulous--both as a speaker, and a person. He incorporated my theme for the season, and his topic--freedom from want-- beautifully into his remarks. He made our group feel that he was there to talk to them about those specific issues.
- | Madison (WI) Civics Club
He was wonderful…received very, very high marks. We got some really good evaluations back & they all rated him very highly. I got to speak with him for a few minutes and he was just a lovely man. He was great & it's been wonderful working with your organization. A very good choice! Several of the attendees have asked for his slide presentation as well. His presentation on the condition of our healthcare system and the public’s health was one of the highlights of the Summit and received rave reviews from our members…Thank you again for such an “eye-opening” presentation, and for helping to make our Summit a success.
- | Hospital Council of Northern & Central California
Everything went well. Dr. Satcher did an excellent job. He was inspirational and inspiring. We ran late because of rainy weather, and LA drivers don't do too well in the rain. Plus there was a conference going on before us, that the hotel was late in clearing. But we did make up some time. In spite of it all, it was a good night. I think Dr. Satcher had a good time also.
- | Loma Linda and La Sierra University