A Tribute to the late Dr. Paul Farmer, A Giant in Global Health
February 22, 2022
By E. Blair Holladay, PhD, MASCP, SCT(ASCP)CM
CEO, American Society for Clinical Pathology
On Monday, February 21, the world has lost one of the greatest medical ambassadors, our good friend and colleague, Dr. Paul Farmer. Dr. Farmer changed the world by dedicating his talents to providing those who were less fortunate with access to medical care and treatment.
The founder of Partners in Health—a nonprofit that serves impoverished areas around the globe—Dr. Farmer was a huge advocate for Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and strongly believed that the laboratory is the linchpin to advancing care in underserved populations.
In his keynote address at ASCP’s 2016 Annual Meeting, Dr. Farmer stated, “Without help from pathologists, we cannot do anything meaningful at all.”
He believed, as ASCP does, that only by improving systems can we help the impoverished. He supported the American Society for Clinical Pathology in launching the Partners in Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment in Africa initiative from the White House several years ago.
ASCP has been a primary partner in the Partners in Health cancer programs in Rwanda and Haiti, which grew from Dr. Farmer’s insistence that “tissue is the issue” and cancer care cannot be delivered without pathology diagnostics.
We are deeply appreciative of his immeasurable contributions to global health. No one can ever replace Paul Farmer. We wish him godspeed.
