November 2, 2001

Kindness and commitment in patient care were recognized and celebrated at the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center's sixth annual dinner Oct. 24. The center – dedicated to supporting and advancing compassionate health care delivery – was founded by Schwartz, a Boston health care attorney who chronicled his experiences as a patient struggling with lung cancer in a 1995 Boston Globe Magazine article. After his death that same year, Schwartz's family, friends and caregivers helped to establish the center as a not-for-profit organization housed at the MGH. The Schwartz Center supports programs and initiatives for clinicians in communication skills, cultural competency, end-of-life and bereavement care and spirituality.

The dinner featured a film presentation, "The Schwartz Center: Meeting the Spiritual Needs of Patients," and a special musical performance by folk star Richie Havens. A highlight of the evening was the presentation of the 2001 Compassionate Caregiver of the Year Award to Ann-Marie Thomas, MD, a rehabilitation medicine specialist at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.

For more information about the Schwartz Center, visit www.theschwartzcenter.org.