J. Sanford (Sandy) Schwartz, M’74, RES’77, the Leon Hess Professor of Medicine and Health Care Management and Economics at the Perelman School of Medicine and the Wharton School and director of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics from 1989 to 1998, passed away on June 24. He was 72.

Dr. Schwartz graduated from the University of Rochester in 1970 with a bachelor’s degree in history. After graduating, he attended medical school at the Perelman School of Medicine. While a third year student, he participated in a U.S. Public Health Service International Fellowship, studying the health care system of Israel and how it was impacted by cultural factors. After completing the fellowship in 1973, he returned to Penn, earning an MD in 1974 and completing a residency in medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania three years later.

Dr. Schwartz began his career at Penn as an instructor in the department of medicine and soon was also hired as a researcher and as a staff physician in the same department, conducting clinically-oriented health services research that focused on assessment of medical interventions and practices, medical decision making, and the adoption and diffusion of medical innovation. In 1978 and 1987, he was promoted to assistant professor and associate professor, respectively. In 1989, he accepted a dual appointment at Wharton, and four years later, in 1993, he became a full professor in both Wharton and the School of Medicine. From 1989 to 1998, he also served as executive director of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics; he was also co-director of Penn’s Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and faculty master of Fisher Hassenfeld College House for eight years. Over the years, he received numerous recognitions and awards, including the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching (Almanac April 22, 2003). He was named the first Leon Hess Endowed Professor in Internal Medicine in 2007 (Almanac February 13, 2007), honoring his “innovation and determination,” in the words of School of Medicine Dean Arthur Rubenstein. Dr. Schwartz was an active member of the Penn community, serving on Faculty Senate and University Council committees and speaking on panels frequently around Penn. 

In the academic sphere, Dr. Schwartz served as an advisor and consultant to a wide range of groups in the public and private sectors. He was the founding director of the American College of Physicians’ Clinical Efficacy Assessment Project and served as president of the American Federation for Clinical Research and the Society for Medical Decision Making. His expertise benefitted the medical community at the national level; he served as vice chair and as a council member of the National Academy of Medicine, the latter a position that was still active when Dr. Schwartz died. In addition, he was the founding editor of the American Journal of Managed Care from 1995 to 2002 and served on the board of several other journals during his distinguished career. 

“Being a mentor was one of the highlights of Sandy’s career,” his colleagues A. Mark Fendrick (of the University of Michigan) and Michael Chernew (Harvard) wrote in the American Journal of Managed Care. “Known for his accessibility, Sandy shared his talents with hundreds of students, researchers, and clinicians—young and old. Sandy reveled in watching his trainees grow their own national reputations in academia, the private sector, and public service. He may have been just as likely to drive you to the airport as to comment on your research methods. It was his characteristic candor and good humor, and his own method to guiding students and researchers toward excellence, that made Sandy special.”

Most importantly, Dr. Schwartz was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and friend. Nothing was more important to him than human connections: his own family and welcoming people into his family.