PITTSBURGH – Anne B. Newman, M.D., M.P.H., has been selected as the first Katherine M. Detre Endowed Chair of Population Health Science at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
The purpose of this chair is to recruit clinical specialists who are familiar with the methodology of large scale clinical trials to study new therapeutics or novel diagnostic technologies and whether they provide greater value than existing ones.
“An appointment to a named chair is among the highest honors a university can bestow upon a member of its faculty,” said Donald S. Burke, M.D., Pitt Public Health dean and UPMC-Jonas Salk Chair of Global Health.
“This appointment recognizes and rewards the quality and impact of Dr. Newman’s work to date, which has earned deep and widespread respect. It also is an expression of our confidence that in the years ahead, she will continue her important contributions to the field of epidemiology, to the University and to the broader society.”
This chair was named after the late Katherine M. Detre, M.D., Dr.P.H., one of the nation’s foremost epidemiologists, particularly noted for her leadership of large-scale clinical studies investigating cardiovascular disease. Detre was a distinguished professor of epidemiology and founded Pitt Public Health’s Epidemiology Data Center.
“I am so honored to serve the department in Katherine Detre’s name,” said Newman, who is chair of Pitt Public Health’s Department of Epidemiology and director of the school’sCenter for Aging and Population Health. “She was a mentor and a role model for me and for many young faculty in our department. Dr. Detre was an insightful and creative scientist, and she thoroughly enjoyed her work.”
Internationally known as an expert in aging and public health, Newman has been a professor of epidemiology at Pitt Public Health since 2005. Through research and clinical practice, she has shown people how to remain productive, active and healthy as they age.
Newman is principal investigator of numerous epidemiologic studies and clinical trials exploring differing aspects of aging, including the Health, Aging, and Body Composition Study, the Long Life Family Study, the Cardiovascular Health Study All Stars, the Lifestyle Interventions for Independence in the Elderly study, and the Aspirin to Reduce Events in the Elderly study.