Health expert to discuss justice and health at WFU

Norman Daniels, professor of ethics and population health at Harvard University’s School of Public Health, will present a lecture titled “Why Justice is Good for Our Health” Feb. 21 at 1 p.m. in Room 162 of Greene Hall at Wake Forest University.

The free public event is part of Wake Forest’s year-long lecture series “Curing and Caring: The Present State and Future of Bioethics in America.” A reception will follow.

The lecture will be based on Daniels’ book “Is Inequality Bad for Your Health?” In his book, Daniels attempts to link social inequalities to health issues.

“Most of us are used to thinking that good health is the result of good medical care,” said Daniels. “But many socially controllable factors affect population health and [health care’s] distribution.”

He cites a study in Britain that found that higher-ranking civil servants—health care, economic level, and education being relatively equal—lived longer, healthier lives than those of lower rank.

Daniels received bachelor’s degrees from Wesleyan and Oxford Universities and his doctorate from Harvard. Before taking his current position at Harvard in 2002, he served as the Goldthwaite Professor and head of the philosophy department at Tufts University.

He is a member of the Institute of Medicine and a founding member of the National Academy of Social Insurance and of the International Society for Equity in Health. He has consulted for groups such as the United Nations, the World Health Organization and the President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine.

For more information, call 336-716-3589.

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