The "SOME PEOPLE” Essays
How Do You Define Health? The Voices of Do No Harm | Edited by Kimberly J. Soenen
Dr. P
(Dr. Peter Orris, Chicago, 2019. Photo by Riley Gunderson.)
"Practicing medicine with an emphasis on problems that are produced by work or community environment exposures permits me to help both individual patients and communities treating and preventing disease. It is only through the combination of treating individuals and preventing through participation in people’s movements for equity and improved living conditions that the challenge of today’s illnesses can be met. My training in these disciplines of medicine has given me the privilege of contributing to people’s wellbeing on both levels. The only strong economy is a sustainable economy based on the safe handling of chemicals and clean energy. All other economic practices cost too much in dollars and human lives.”
— Peter Orris, MD, MPH, Professor and Chief of Service
Department of Occupational & Environmental Medicine
University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System
Years practicing medicine: 50
EXPERTISE
Dr. Orris has practiced occupational and environmental medicine in the Chicago area for over 50 years. Prior to his current position with UI Health, he served as the Midwest Regional Medical Officer for the National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and as an adviser to the World Health Organization (WHO); local, state, and federal governments; environmental organizations; labor unions; and corporations. Dr. Orris is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, and was a board member of the Institute of Medicine of Chicago. He has also edited and authored numerous articles, book chapters, and governmental reports in the field of occupational and environmental medicine, environmental toxicology, and epidemiology.
EDUCATION
Bachelor of Arts: Harvard College
Diplomat: Occupational Medicine, American Board of Preventative Medicine
Fellowship: American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Fellowship: American College of Physicians
Licensee: Physician, State of Illinois
Medical Doctorate: Rosalind Franklin University \ Chicago Medical School
Masters in Public Health: Yale University School of Medicine
Professor: Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Professor: Rush University