New York: India-born Vikram Patel, a well-known researcher and mental health expert, will be the next Chairman of Harvard Medical School’s Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.
Mumbai-born Vikram Patel, who is the Pershing Square Professor of Global Health at the Blavatnik Institute at Harvard Medical School, will take over on September 1, it was officially announced last week. Vikram Patel’s work focuses on the burden of mental health problems across the lifespan, their association with social disadvantage and the use of community resources to prevent and treat these problems, he will succeed Paul Farmer, who led the department until his death in February 2022.
Announcing the appointment, Harvard Medical School (HMS) Dean George Q. Daly said, ‘Vikram is a worthy successor and uniquely prepared to lead.’ Vikram Patel said, ‘I am very honored to serve as the department chair.’ “I am conscious that I follow not only in Paul’s footsteps but also some of the most influential scholars in global health and social medicine,” added Patel.
His appointment comes at a time of increasing awareness of the growing mental health crisis worldwide. In particular, Patel’s deep knowledge of the complexities of mental health will complement HMS’s strengths in neuroscience and neurobiology, Daly noted.