UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine graduates Class of 2009
Cardiologist Dr. Bernard Lown, senior physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital, co-founder of the Physicians for Social Responsibility, and co-recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize, delivered the commencement address at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine’s graduation ceremonies Saturday, June 6 at Merrill Auditorium.
Dr. Lown also received an honorary Doctor of Science degree.
Thousands of family members and friends gathered to witness as the College of Osteopathic Medicine awarded 123 doctor of osteopathic medicine degrees and 21 master of public health degrees at the 28th commencement ceremonies. The graduating class includes four dual D.O./M.P.H. recipients.
Stating “the dire urgency in American health care is to restore the pivotal role of the primary care physician,” Lown advised graduates that “…in order to heal, first and foremost one has to learn to listen.” He praised the value of an osteopathic education, stating: “Essential to your medical education is the primacy of the whole human being; integrating body, mind, community as well as culture. I am here because of enormous admiration for this type of pedagogy.”
The University also awarded its prestigious Pioneer of Osteopathic Medicine Medal to John D. Downing and Ira M. Stockwell, Jr., D.O. The medal is the highest honor given by the College of Osteopathic Medicine, and has become recognized throughout New England as one of the highest honors given to members and friends of the osteopathic profession.
Commencement Speaker and Honorary
Degree Recipient: Bernard Lown, M.D.
Bernard Lown is Professor of Cardiology Emeritus at the Harvard School of Public Health, Senior Physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and the founder of the Lown Cardiovascular Center and Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation. A pioneer in research on sudden cardiac death, Dr. Lown developed the direct current defibrillator for resuscitating the arrested heart as well as the cardioverter for correcting disordered heart rhythms.
He also introduced the use of the drug Lidocaine for the control of disturbances of the heartbeat. Dr. Lown’s innovative research established the role of psychological and behavioral factors on heart rhythms and as provocative factors of sudden death. Dr. Lown graduated summa cum laude from the University of Maine and received his M.D. degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
He is the author of a number of books, including The Lost Art of Healing: Practicing Compassion in Medicine and his most recent work, Prescription for Survival: A Doctor's Journey to End Nuclear Madness.
Dr. Lown co-founded the Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) in 1962 and became its first president. The organization helped educate millions of people on the medical consequences of nuclear war. From 1974 to 1975, he presided over the USA-China Physicians Friendship Association, and served as coordinator of collaborative studies with the USSR on cardiovascular disease on behalf of the National Heart and Lung Institute. In 1980, he co-founded with Dr. Evgeni Chazov, of the former Soviet Union, the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW).
Drs. Lown and Chazov served as IPPNW’s first co-presidents, and in 1985, they were co-recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of IPPNW. Dr. Lown is also the recipient of the UNESCO Peace Education Prize (with Dr. Chazov), the George F. Kennan Award, the Ghandi Peace Prize, and the first Cardinal Medeiros Peace Award, as well as 20 honorary degrees from leading universities both in the United States and abroad. In 1993, he delivered the most distinguished Indira Gandhi Memorial Lecture in New Delhi.
Pioneer of Osteopathic Medicine
Medal Recipient: John D. Downing
John D. Downing is a longtime devotee and advocate of osteopathic medicine. He served the University of New England as a trustee for more than 20 years, from 1984 through 2006. During his tenure on the board he chaired the finance committee for many years. His service to the osteopathic community stretched 20 years as well, serving as a trustee for the Osteopathic Hospital of Maine from 1960 to 1980. While with OHM he chaired the finance committee. He has served on the boards of a number of businesses and community organizations in southern Maine.
In 2006, Mr. Downing received the President’s Award from the University of New England for his dedicated service to the school. Mr. Downing is a graduate of Nasson College in Springvale, Maine. As the owner/founder of Downing Real Estate Agency, he has been serving in the Kennebunk and surrounding communities for more than 50 years.
Pioneer of Osteopathic Medicine
Medal Recipient: Ira M. Stockwell, Jr., D.O.
As an osteopathic family physician practicing in Westbrook, Dr. Stockwell has been a clinical faculty member at the UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine for 30 years. A Maine native and graduate of the University of Maine – Orono, he earned his osteopathic medical degree from the Kirksville College of Osteopathy and Surgery (now A.T. Still University, Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine) in 1970. He returned to Maine to complete his internship at the Osteopathic Hospital of Maine in Portland and has been practicing in southern Maine ever since.
Dr. Stockwell is the longtime president of the Southern Maine Osteopathic Group (SMOG). In addition to his own practice, he maintains staff privileges at Mercy Hospital and Maine Medical Center. He serves as a team physician for Westbrook High School athletics, as well as the school department’s physician.
The Maine Osteopathic Association has honored him with the Distinguished Service Award in 1998 and the Roswell Bates Award in 1997. In 1986, UNE College of Osteopathic Medicine students named Dr. Stockwell Clinical Preceptor of the Year.