$3 Million Gift to Endow Bioethics Chair at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine

 Newswise — Nutley, NJ – November 16, 2023 – On October 30, 2023, Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation held an investiture ceremony for Hannah I. Lipman, M.D., M.S., HEC-C, vice president of Bioethics at Hackensack Meridian Health and a professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine. The endowed chair is thanks to a $3 million gift from Kalmon D. Post, M.D., to create the Linda Farber Post Chair in Bioethics at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine in honor of his wife, Linda Farber Post, BSN, M.A., J.D. This is the first endowed chair funded by Dr. Post and will support the work of Dr. Lipman.

“The creation of this chair, made possible by Dr. and Mrs. Post’s gift, will ensure that our students gain a keen understanding of bioethics as an integral part of health care delivery and teach our students to consider the human side of medicine, including the social, psychological, moral, cultural and ethical issues in the care of patients that grow more challenging every year,” said Robert C. Garrett, FACHE, CEO, Hackensack Meridian Health. “Dr. Lipman’s visionary leadership has been exceptional in the field of bioethics, both at Hackensack Meridian Health and throughout her remarkable career, and we are so pleased that she is our inaugural recipient.” 

“I am deeply grateful for Dr. Post’s kindness in making this most generous gift in honor of his wife, Linda Farber Post, to establish the Linda Farber Post Chair in Bioethics,” said Joyce P. Hendricks, president and chief development officer, Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation. “This incredible gift not only pays tribute to a wonderful individual, but will forever bestow a distinction that will resonate with its recipients, like the remarkable Dr. Hannah Lipman, for years to come. Thank you, Dr. Post, and congratulations to Dr. Lipman on being the first recipient of the Linda Farber Post Chair in Bioethics!”

Dr. Lipman joined Hackensack Meridian Health in 2018 and now oversees a network- wide Bioethics program, which provides clinical bioethics consultation and education, research ethics support, as well as guidance on organizational ethics issues and policy development. Prior to joining Hackensack Meridian Health, Dr. Lipman was associate director of the Center for Bioethics at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, NY and director of Bioethics Education at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. 

“It gives us great pleasure to make this gift to fund the Linda Farber Post Chair in Bioethics at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine,” said Dr. Post. “As the world evolves and technology advances, it is incredibly important that the physicians of tomorrow are prepared to make difficult decisions when it comes to ethical, social and legal issues throughout their careers. We are so pleased to be able to create this chair, which will provide this training in perpetuity, and would like to extend our congratulations to Dr. Lipman on being named the inaugural chair of this endowment.” 

Dr. Lipman’s interest in bioethics was sparked during her college years when she volunteered at a nursing home and assisted on a research study about making complex decisions about end-of-life care. She maintained that interest throughout her Internal Medicine residency at the University of Michigan and Cardiology Fellowship at the Tufts New England Medical Center and Mount Sinai Health System, which culminated in her completing the Montefiore-Einstein Certificate Program in Bioethics and Medical Humanities during her fellowship in Geriatrics and Palliative Care at Mount Sinai. 

“Dr. Lipman is an extraordinary professor and a true expert in the field of bioethics,” says Jeffrey R. Boscamp, M.D., President and Dean, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine and co-chief academic officer, Hackensack Meridian Health. “Bioethics is an incredibly important and complex field and we are filled with gratitude to Linda and Kal for their generosity and partnership in helping us provide our students with the cutting-edge education for which our School of Medicine is known.”

This generous gift supports the development of bioethics programs, particularly those that impact students at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine. Our first initiative supported four students at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine to attend the 2023 annual conference of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities. There is tremendous interest in Bioethics among School of Medicine students. 

“I am very grateful to Linda and Kal for their generosity, for this wonderful opportunity and for recognizing the important role that bioethics plays in medicine and medical education,” says Dr. Lipman. “My work in bioethics education, particularly with medical students, has been profoundly rewarding. This meaningful gift will support my continued work with future medical students, imparting vital information and helping them develop ways of thinking about complex issues that will guide them throughout their careers.”

“The Posts are longtime colleagues and friends, who continue to give back in incredibly meaningful ways,” said Ihor Sawczuk, M.D., FACS, president of Academics, Research and Innovation for Hackensack Meridian Health. “It is so fitting to have this vital new role bear the name of Linda Farber Post, because of how much she has done for this health network. We applaud her and her husband Kal.”

To learn more about how to support the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, please contact Sheila Wolfinger, executive director, at [email protected] or visit www.hmsom.org/philanthropy/.

ABOUT HACKENSACK MERIDIAN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE The Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, the first private medical school in New Jersey in more than 50 years, welcomed its first class of students in 2018 to its On3 campus in Nutley and Clifton. Hackensack Meridian Health assumed its independent operation in July 2020. The school achieved full accreditation in February 2023. The school’s vision is that each person in New Jersey, and in the United States, regardless of race or socioeconomic status, will enjoy the highest levels of wellness in an economically and behaviorally sustainable fashion. The School’s unique curriculum focuses on linking the basic science with clinical relevance, through an integrated curriculum in a team-oriented, collaborative environment. The school prides itself on outreach, through programs like the Human Dimension, which is active in communities across New Jersey. 

ABOUT HACKENSACK MERIDIAN HEALTH FOUNDATION

Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3), is the philanthropic division of Hackensack Meridian Health, a leading not-for-profit health care organization that is the largest, most comprehensive and truly integrated health care network in New Jersey, offering a complete range of medical services, innovative research and life-enhancing care. The foundation oversees fundraising for the network’s three academic medical centers, two children’s hospitals and seven community-based medical center foundations, as well as key initiatives, programs and services offered by Hackensack Meridian Health, including nursing support, behavioral health, children’s health, Hackensack Meridian Health’s Center for Discovery & Innovation and Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.  

Hackensack Meridian Health Foundation has been designated as both a High Performer Overall and Healthcare System High Performer by the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP) within their 2022 Report on Giving. 

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