Dean Receives Rema Lapouse Award.
Dean Sandro Galea has received the Rema Lapouse Award for lifetime achievement in epidemiology, mental health, and applied public health statistics.
Elizabeth Costello, professor of medical psychology at Duke University and the 1999 Lapouse Award recipient, presented the award at the 2015 American Public Health Association (APHA) Annual Meeting.
“It is particularly appropriate that Sandro would be awarded this—Rema Lapouse was an alumna of BU,” Costello told the standing room-only crowd. Lapouse, a 1937 graduate of the then-College of Liberal Arts, later became a founding member of the Mental Health Section of APHA.
“It is the joint award across mental health, epidemiology, and statistics,” Costello continued. “Sandro has already made major contributions in all three areas. In epidemiology, Sandro coordinated several studies after the 9/11 attacks. In mental health, he has become one of the country’s leading experts on PTSD. In statistics, he has applied complex systems modeling for population health.
“In summary, he is superlatively qualified for this award,” Costello concluded. “If you have not heard of him, it is because he is incredibly humble and retiring.”
Upon receiving the award, Galea delivered the 2015 Lapouse Lecture, titled “Looking for Resilience: On What Matters Most to Improve the Mental Health of Populations.” The lecture approached resiliency—the ability to maintain, or return to, good mental health after traumatic events—from a public health perspective.