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This month, WiRED is honored to welcome the 17th Surgeon General of the United States, Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, to its board.
In 2006, Dr. Carmona successfully completed the statutory four-year term of the U.S. Surgeon General and was named vice chairman of Canyon Ranch, Distinguished Professor of Public Health at the University of Arizona, and president of the non-profit Canyon Ranch Institute.
Born to a poor Hispanic family in New York City, Dr. Carmona experienced homelessness, hunger, and health disparities during his youth. The experiences greatly sensitized him to the relationships among culture, health, education, and economic status and shaped his future.
After dropping out of high school, Dr. Carmona enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967. While serving, he earned his General Equivalency Diploma and went on to become a combat-decorated Special Forces Vietnam veteran. After leaving active duty, he attended Bronx Community College of the City University of New York through an open enrollment program for veterans. He then attended the University of California, San Francisco, where he received a bachelor of science degree (1977) and medical degree (1979). At the University of California Medical School, Dr. Carmona was awarded the prestigious gold-headed cane as the top graduate.
Trained in general and vascular surgery, Dr. Carmona also completed a National Institutes of Health-sponsored fellowship in trauma, burns, and critical care. Dr. Carmona was then recruited jointly by the Tucson Medical Center and the University of Arizona to start and direct Arizona's first regional trauma care system. He went on to become the chairman of the State of Arizona Southern Regional Emergency Medical System, a professor of surgery, public health, and family and community medicine at the University of Arizona, and the Pima County Sheriff's Department surgeon and deputy sheriff.
As U.S. Surgeon General from 2002 to 2006, Dr. Carmona focused on prevention, preparedness, health disparities, health literacy, and global health to include health diplomacy. He also issued many landmark Surgeon General communications during his tenure, including the definitive Surgeon General's Report about the dangers of second-hand smoke.
Throughout his career, Dr. Carmona has maintained a commitment to underserved populations. “We must help diverse populations become more health literate so they can be involved in improving their overall health and well-being,” explains Dr. Carmona. “This also means focusing on preventing health problems, not just fixing them after they’ve happened.”
Editing by Kate Mayer and Annie Stuart; layout by Brian Colombe.
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