UW alum and medical pioneer honored

Dr. William Foege has hoped to make a global impact since his childhood dream of becoming a doctor in Africa. Today he is acknowledged as one of the driving forces in the eradication of small pox in the 1970s as well as a leading expert on global health strategy.

Last week, U.S. News and World Report included the UW Medicine alumnus and namesake of the UW Bioengineering and Genome Sciences building in its list of America's 18 best leaders.

Foege is best known for his role in smallpox eradication in the 1970s. He worked on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s smallpox eradication program in Nigeria, where smallpox was taking the lives of thousands. The global eradication method at the time was to instrument mass vaccinations; the goal was to reach 80 percent of the country. Due to an insufficient amount of vaccinations, Foege was led to "think like a virus," reported U.S. News and World Report Nov. 12.

He began to vaccinate areas strategically, starting by going to major market places and other locations with high populations and inoculating visitors and citizens alike. This tactic is now widely used as a global eradication strategy.

Due in large part to Foege's efforts in India and Nigeria, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared in 1979 that Small Pox had been eradicated completely.

In the mid-1980s, Foege was asked to work alongside several health organizations as a part of the WHO's campaign to immunize 80 percent of the world's children. In six years, his contributions enabled the WHO to reach its goal.

Foege also began the "first venture into pharmaco-philanthropy" when he partnered with the drug company Merck in 1987 to treat river blindness, according to U.S. News and World Report. He urged the company to pledge drugs at no charge and oversaw their distribution, initiating what many consider to be the beginning of pharmaceutical partnerships.

A former director of both the CDC and the Carter Center in Atlanta, the epidemiologist is now a senior fellow with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. According to the Foundation's Web site, he advises on strategies that can be used in global health initiatives.

"Bill Foege has devoted his life to helping others live longer, healthier lives," said William H. Gates Sr., co-chair of the Gates Foundation. "His achievements remind us that investing in health is a critical first step to improving the social and economic well-being of millions of people around the world."

At 71, Foege continues to raise awareness about children, population, preventive medicine and public health leadership. He believes science can provide the answer to some of the world's most difficult health issues.

"There's something better than science, and that's science with a conscience," he said in a speech at the dedication of the UW Bioengineering and Genome Sciences building.

U.S. News and World Report's special report was compiled by the magazine and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. It honored a broad selection of leaders, including cellist Yo-Yo Ma, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

[Reach reporter Erika Cederlind at news@thedaily.

washington.edu.]