Atul Gawande

Atul Gawande is an internationally acclaimed and bestselling author, surgeon, professor and public health researcher. He is a leader in the field of medicine and public health, having authored several best-selling books on health-care reform, medical ethics and poverty, among other topics. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the MacArthur Fellowship and the MacArthur Achievement Award.

Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1965, Gawande attended Harvard Medical School and then completed a residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. His first book, Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science, was published in 2002 and was both a critical and a commercial success. The book examines the imperfect nature of medical practice, particularly in how mistakes are made and how they can be avoided. It also looks at the reality of death and the human cost of medical errors.

Following Complications, Gawande went on to write several other critically acclaimed and best-selling books, including Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance in 2009 and Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End in 2014. In Better, Gawande draws on research and stories from his own experience as a surgeon to explore the complex, chaotic and sometimes frightening world of health-care delivery. He reveals the secrets of success in the medical system and how to reduce medical errors, increase value and improve well-being.

In Being Mortal, Gawande further examines the realities of medicine and what matters most toward the end of our lives. He explores the ways medical providers and families can help restore autonomy and meaning for those facing difficult medical realities. The book was a New York Times best seller and was praised for its sober yet hopeful look humanity, mortality and medical care.

Gawande currently serves as the Executive Director of Ariadne Labs, a joint center for health systems innovation of Harvard University, the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. This role keeps him at the forefront of research on how to make health-care delivery more effective and efficient. He also serves as a staff surgeon at Brigham and Women's Hospital, where he focuses on complicated surgical difficulties and carries out a clinical practice.

Gawande has also been appointed to several distinguished posts, including as a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and as a professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School. He also serves as a columnist for the New Yorker Magazine, exploring the complexities of medical decision-making and the healthcare system.

Through his writing, research, teaching and clinical practice, Gawande has become one of the most influential medical thought leaders of our time. His books and articles help bring together a broad range of perspectives on health care and medicine, guiding physicians and other health professionals towards more compassionate and effective care.