Boston University Superfund Basic Research Program

On Saturday May 19, 2007, Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility will be sponsoring a one day conference titled "The Medical and Societal Consequences of the Iraq War: Strategies to Promote True Security." The conference will be held at the Old South Church on 645 Boylston Street in Boston (Across from the Boston Public Library).

Speakers and topics include:
Michael McCally, MD, PhD — PSR Executive Director — Welcome

David Rush, MD — Civilian Casualties: Making Sense of the Controversy
Dr. Rush, Prof. of Nutrition, Community Health, & Pediatrics (emeritus) at Tufts University, is one of three epidemiologists to sit on the US Department of Energy's Scientific Advisory Group to joint US-Russian studies on radiation exposure at nuclear weapons production sites in Russia.

Gene Bolles, MD — Hidden and Horrific Costs of War
Dr. Bolles, a Vietnam veteran, served as Chief of Neurosurgery at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, treating injured soldiers from war zones around the world, including Afghanistan and Iraq. He was an advisor on the film, The Ground Truth (see below).

James Munroe, MD — Working with Veterans and Their Families: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Other Key Issues, and Clinical Dilemmas
Dr. Munroe is an expert from the Veteran Administration’s Boston Healthcare System’s National PTSD Center.

Andy and Anne Sapp — Veterans for Peace/Military Families Speak Out
Andy Sapp, an Iraq veteran, will speak about the effects of deployment on service members and their families. Anne Sapp is on the Board of Military Families Speak Out and advocates for recognition that family members need medical support as well.

Victor Sidel, MD — Preemptive War, Nukes, and Proliferation: A Prescription for Disaster
A past president of the American Public Health Association, PSR, and IPPNW, Dr. Sidel is co-editor of War and Public Health, Terrorism and Public Health, Social Injustice and Public Health, and The Global Gun Epidemic: From Saturday Night Specials to AK-47s.

Congressman Ed Markey, D-MA [Invited]

Linda Bilmes — Medical and Disability Costs of the Iraq War: Long-Term Consequences
Prof. Bilmes teaches at the Kennedy School at Harvard. In 2006, she co-authored "The Economic Costs of the Iraq War: An Appraisal Three Years After the Beginning of the Conflict."

Rev. John F. Hudson — War, Peace, and God . . .
Rev. Hudson is Sr. Pastor at West Concord Union Church. He is also a newspaper columnist and active in the Troop Deployment Support Group comprised of friends and families of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

John O. Pastore, MD — Q & A and Wrap Up
Dr. Pastore is Assoc. Prof. of Medicine at Tufts University and Dir. of Echocardiology at Caritas St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center. He was among the first group of physicians invited by the Iraqi Medical Association to assess the effects of sanctions against Iraq prior to the first war.

In addition to the speakers there will also be a viewing of the movie "The Ground Truth."Film:

The Ground Truth
Academy Award Nominee “Hailed as ‘powerful’ and ‘quietly unflinching’ . . . the subjects are patriotic young Americans — ordinary men and women who heeded the call for service in Iraq — as they experience recruitment and training, combat, homecoming, and the struggle to reintegrate with families and communities. The terrible conflict in Iraq, depicted with ferocious honesty, is a prelude for the even more challenging battles fought by the soldiers returning home — with personal demons, an uncomprehending public, and an indifferent government . . . each soldier becomes a new kind of hero, bearing witness and giving support to other veterans and learning to fearlessly wield the most powerful
weapon of all — the truth.” Focus Features

Registration for this event is $10 and is limited to the first 200 respondents. To register for the event please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .