Inaugural address of the 162nd president of the American Medical Association.

On June 26, 2007, Ronald M. Davis, MD, was inaugurated as the 162nd president of the American Medical Association at an ornate ceremony in the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Chicago Hotel. He is the first AMA president to be board-certified in preventive medicine. After Dr. Davis completed the Epidemic Intelligence Service program and the preventive medicine residency program at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he served as director of CDC's Office on Smoking and Health and then as medical director of the Michigan Department of Public Health. Since 1995, he has served as director of the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit. By tradition, the presidents of state medical societies and the leaders of a few other medical organizations sit on the dais during the AMA president's inaugural speech. Reflecting Dr. Davis's interest in strengthening the partnership between clinical medicine and public health, he invited leaders of seven preventive medicine and public health organizations to join him on the dais during his address: the Aerospace Medical Association, the American Association of Public Health Physicians, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the American College of Preventive Medicine, the American Public Health Association, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, and the National Association of County and City Health Officials. Dr. Davis's inaugural address appears below, except for a portion at the beginning in which he gave tribute to many family members, friends, and colleagues for their support through the years. This portion of his speech can be found on the Journal's website at www.ajpm-online.net.