Founder of first North American chapter of Doctors Without Borders to speak at Purdue

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Dr. Richard Heinzl, founder of the first North American chapter of Doctors Without Borders, will speak April 5 at Purdue University.

"Lessons from Abroad: The Opportunities of a Borderless World" is 7 p.m. in Stewart Center's Loeb Playhouse. The event, which is free and open to the public, is the keynote address of Life Inspired, the annual showcase for the College of Health and Human Sciences.

Doctors Without Borders, a Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization, provides medical professionals to serve the world's most vulnerable populations, including areas in military conflict. In 1988, just out of McMaster University Medical School, Heinzl founded the first North American chapter of Doctors Without Borders, which is located in Canada.

He served as the chapter's first field volunteer, spending a year in remote Cambodia, and he wrote a memoir, "Cambodia Callin." He has advised and supported the organization for more than 20 years. Today he sits on the organization's Telemedicine Committee. Heinzl's current focus is transformative health technologies, and he is now global medical director for WorldCare, a Boston-based, Harvard-affiliated telemedicine company.

"Dr. Heinzl's experiences and expertise from his work in more than 70 countries exemplify how technology has changed and how new technologies can impact the medical field to save lives and address public health concerns," said Christine Ladisch, dean of the College of Health and Human Sciences.

Life Inspired is the annual showcase of events for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the College of Health and Human Sciences. More information is available online.

The college is home to the schools of Health Sciences; Hospitality and Tourism Management; and Nursing; and the departments of Consumer Science; Health and Kinesiology; Human Development and Family Studies; Nutrition Science; Psychological Sciences; and Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences. 

Writer: Amy Patterson Neubert, 765-494-9723, apatterson@purdue.edu

Source: Casey Dexter, director of donor relations and events for the College of Health and Human Sciences, 765-494-0355, ccdexter@prf.org