October 31, 2003

An evening of compassion

Once again, the importance of compassionate care was underscored as more than 1,400 supporters and friends of the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center gathered Oct. 23 to attend the eighth annual dinner celebrating the center's ongoing efforts to strengthen the relationship between patients and caregivers.

A highlight of this year's dinner was a special honor given to MGH physician Paula K. Rauch, MD, (below) chief of the Child Psychiatry Consultation Service and director of the Cancer Center Parenting Program at the MGH. Rauch was recognized with the Schwartz Center's annual Compassionate Caregiver Award, which honors a Massachusetts caregiver who displays extraordinary compassion in caring for patients. Rauch was selected for her innovative work with a program she developed to help patients with life-threatening cancer deal with parenting issues.

The much-anticipated entertainment for the evening was a lively performance by actor, singer and dancer Ben Vereen,(above) who sang for the audience and recounted his own experiences with the health care profession during his recovery from a severe car accident. Kenneth B. Schwartz was a Boston lawyer and health care advocate who devoted his life to making a difference in the Boston community and elsewhere. The Schwartz Center was established by family and friends in his memory after he died of lung cancer in 1995 at age 40.