Seminar Series

The Health and the Public Interest Virtual Seminar Series

The Health and the Public Interest Seminar Series is a forum in which Georgetown students, faculty, and the general public engage with key leaders in healthcare research, policy, and advocacy. Seminar topics may include topics such as cross-cultural views of disease, cultural change and health, the medicalization of normal life, corporate shaping of discourse about illness, the regulation of medical products, placebo effects, symptom formation and healing, the high costs of drugs, creating new diseases, and the opioid epidemic.

The Seminar Series is open to prospective students, the Georgetown community, and interested members of the general public. The 75-minute-long virtual lectures are held on Wednesdays from 12pm to 1:15pm EST. Speakers usually present for 30 minutes to an hour leaving time for questions and discussion.

Spring 2025 Seminar Series Schedule

January 22 – Anthony Fleg, MD, Associate Professor of Family and Community Medicine at University of New Mexico.

“Healing Through Strengths, Culture, Movement and Love.” Register now.

January 29 – Michael Brian Meit, MA, MPH, Eastern Tennessee State University.

“Health Equity, Poverty, and Rural Resilience in Appalachia.”

February 5 – Gary Schwitzer, Adjunct Professor at University of Minnesota.

“A Call for Healthy Skepticism to Improve Critical Thinking about Healthcare.”

February 12 – Paul Offit, MD, Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania.

“Losing Trust in Public Health Agencies: What We Got Right and What We Got Wrong During the COVID-19 Pandemic.”

February 19 – Ed Silverman, Senior Writer at STAT News.

“A Prescription for Distortion.”

February 26 – Cass Crisafi, PhD, MPH, Johns Hopkins University.

“Disarming the Debate: Understanding Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue”