Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation

Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation The Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation based in New York City that supports initiatives in medical education, health professions training, and health policy. The foundation convenes leaders, funds projects, and produces reports to influence practice at institutions such as Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins University, and University of Pennsylvania. Its work has intersected with organizations including the Association of American Medical Colleges, Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, and National Academy of Medicine.

History

Founded in 1930 by the estate of merchant and philanthropist Josiah Macy Jr., the foundation began its grantmaking during the interwar period, engaging with institutions such as Columbia University, Cornell University, and Yale University. During the mid-20th century the foundation funded medical research and clinical care projects at Mount Sinai Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, and Bellevue Hospital. In the 1960s and 1970s it expanded toward health professions education, collaborating with University of California, San Francisco, University of Chicago, and Washington University in St. Louis. The foundation convened panels including participants from National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and World Health Organization during the HIV/AIDS epidemic and later during the SARS and H1N1 responses. In recent decades, it emphasized interprofessional education with partnerships involving Stanford University, Duke University, and University of Michigan.

Mission and Activities

The foundation’s mission focuses on improving the education of health professionals and strengthening clinical learning environments through meetings, reports, and targeted grants. It has convened experts from institutions such as Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Boston Children’s Hospital, and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to address workforce issues and patient safety. The foundation produces consensus statements and monographs comparable to outputs from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Pew Charitable Trusts, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and collaborates with policy groups including RAND Corporation, Brookings Institution, and Commonwealth Fund. It has engaged authors and scholars affiliated with Columbia Business School, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Yale School of Medicine, and Brown University Warren Alpert Medical School.

Grants and Programs

Grantmaking has supported curriculum reform at medical schools such as Perelman School of Medicine, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Programmatic initiatives have included interprofessional workshops involving nursing programs at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, pharmacy programs at University of North Carolina, and physician assistant programs at Stanford School of Medicine. The foundation has awarded project grants to innovators at institutions including Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and University of California, Los Angeles to pilot competency-based education, simulation training with links to Laerdal and Simulab collaborations, and assessment methods influenced by work at the American Board of Medical Specialties and Federation of State Medical Boards. It has funded fellows from institutions such as Rockefeller University, Salk Institute, and Scripps Research to study pedagogy and assessment.

Governance and Leadership

Governance has featured trustees drawn from health and philanthropic circles, including leaders with ties to Rockefeller Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and Ford Foundation. Past chairs and board members have been affiliated with institutions such as Columbia University, Harvard Medical School, and Mount Sinai, and have included clinicians connected to American Medical Association, American Nurses Association, and American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Executive directors and program officers have collaborated with advisory panels that include representatives from National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine, and Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. The foundation’s staff and advisors have worked with legal counsel and auditors associated with Sullivan & Cromwell and Deloitte during organizational governance and compliance activities.

Impact and Influence

The foundation’s convenings and publications have influenced curricular reforms at institutions including Yale School of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and have informed accreditation standards at the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and Accreditation Commission for Graduate Medical Education. Its reports and workshops have been cited in white papers from the Commonwealth Fund, policy briefs at RAND, and consensus statements at National Academy of Medicine. Networks fostered by the foundation connect leaders from Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, US Public Health Service, and global actors such as World Health Organization and Pan American Health Organization. Alumni of foundation-supported initiatives have become leaders at institutions such as Cleveland Clinic, Mount Sinai, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Johns Hopkins, and have contributed to reforms embraced by Association of American Medical Colleges, American Board of Internal Medicine, and American College of Physicians.

Category:Foundations based in the United States