UCLA Fielding School Professor Emeritus Dr. Paul Torrens recognized with Lifetime Achievement Award by Partners in Care Foundation
Dr. Paul Torrens will be honored with the 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award for his mentorship and leadership by the Partners in Care Foundation.
Dr. Paul Torrens, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health professor emeritus of Health Policy and Management, will be honored with the 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award for his mentorship and leadership by the Partners in Care Foundation at the Partners’ Annual Tribute Dinner on Monday, June 21, 2021.
“He was way ahead of the game with regard to the role of emotional intelligence in leaders and I think his incorporation of those concepts early on was extremely helpful to several generations of students,” said Thomas M. Priselac, president and chief executive officer of the Cedars-Sinai Health System and an adjunct professor at the Fielding School. “I was a beneficiary myself of Paul’s mentoring … it was an incredibly professional and gracious way of allowing me to grow and evolve in that kind of a role.”
Torrens, who is a father of four and married to longtime wife, Jacquelyn, has taught for more than 40 years at the Fielding School, helping many shape distinguished careers in public health. A physician by training, his career spans both healthcare management and policy. The Paul Torrens Health Forum at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health--which brings together the academic and practice fields for regular conversations about public health issues--was founded by Dr. Torrens and subsequently named in his honor.
“It’s really different than having a professor talk about ‘The Theory of Change’ or whatever,” said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, UCLA FSPH distinguished professor of health policy and management, referring to the Torrens Forum. “The people who are out there in the field facing day-to-day problems and strategic problems give a perspective that is essential for students.”
When Paul Viviano, currently the president and CEO of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, was a senior in college, he attended one of Torrens’ graduate-level classes.
“His love of public health, his love for caring for the community and for the policy implications of healthcare is infectious,” said Viviano, who is being honored with the Foundation’s Vision & Excellence in Healthcare Leadership Award. “He influenced more young students to go into healthcare management than anybody because he did it for so long and was such an outstanding role model.”
Torrens and Viviano will be honored at the Partners in Care Foundation’s 21st Annual Tribute Dinner on Monday, June 21, 2021; the event will be only the second time Partners in Care has presented the Lifetime Achievement Award. The Partners in Care Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, based in southern California, which has provided preventative support and social services to adults with complex health issues since 1997.
The UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, founded in 1961, is dedicated to enhancing the public's health by conducting innovative research, training future leaders and health professionals from diverse backgrounds, translating research into policy and practice, and serving our local communities and the communities of the nation and the world. The school has 631 students from 26 nations engaged in carrying out the vision of building healthy futures in greater Los Angeles, California, the nation and the world.
Faculty Referenced by this Article
Professor of Community Health Sciences & Health Policy and Management, and Associate Dean for Research
Dr. Ron Andersen is the Wasserman Professor Emeritus in the UCLA Departments of Health Policy and Management.
Dr. Michelle S. Keller is a health services researcher whose research focuses on the use and prescribing of high-risk medications.
EMPH Academic Program Director with expertise in healthcare marketing, finance, and reproductive health policy, teaching in the EMPH, MPH, MHA program
Nationally recognized health services researcher and sociomedical scientist with 25+ years' experience in effectiveness and implementation research.