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DR. THOMAS H. PETERSON HONORED AS COMMUNITY ACTIVIST OF THE YEAR BY AMERICAN LEGACY FOUNDATION®

3/13/2008

Grand Rapids Physician Honored in New York City for Local Efforts Around Tobacco

NEW YORK – The American Legacy Foundation^®, a national public health foundation dedicated to building a world where young people reject tobacco and anyone can quit smoking, paid tribute to Thomas H. Peterson, M.D., a Michigan-based healthcare professional and community activist, at the fifth Annual Legacy Honors Awards on March 10 in New York City. The American Legacy Foundation Honors ceremony is an annual fundraising event to recognize individuals and corporations who have demonstrated commitment, leadership and innovation in their work toward creating a tobacco-free world.

Dr. Peterson has been involved in the tobacco control movement for more than 15 years. He was awarded the Community Activist Award for his significant successes and innovations in working with youth, health care providers, and adults of all ages to become or stay tobacco-free.  Dr. Peterson is currently a national consultant for hospitals and business of all sizes that want their environments to become smoke-free.

Dr. Peterson has founded many tobacco awareness programs over the years including Tobacco Free Partners -- a coalition of more than 45 organizations that work together to provide tobacco cessation classes, education, and advocacy for Kent County, Michigan. In addition, Dr. Peterson was instrumental in founding Students of TFMAD, a medical student program that provides tobacco education talks to inner-city school children. He is also the co-founder of NicoTeam, a coalition of organizations that helps to provide tobacco prevention education to all children, and NicoTeam Docs, which is made up of a group of retired physicians who provide tobacco prevention talks to inner city schools in Michigan. 

Throughout the past two decades, Peterson has given more than 250 presentations about the dangers of tobacco usage. He has focused on educating communities, and has spoken to more than 70,000 school aged children on tobacco education, health promotion issues, and nutrition and exercise. In addition, he has provided tobacco cessation training for pediatricians and primary caregivers, and most recently has advised colleges across the United States to advocate smoke-free campus life.

While serving as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Michigan State College of Human Medicine, he developed a community tobacco education program with first and second year medical students called Tobacco Free Michigan Active Doctors. The program trained and continues to train medical school students to go into local schools and give tobacco prevention lectures.

Currently, Dr. Peterson serves as a pediatrician in Grand Rapids, MI, where he remains focused on raising awareness about the dangers of tobacco. In addition to his pediatric work, Dr. Peterson is the current Medical Director of Quality Improvement at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, as well as the Medical Director of Healthier Communities at Spectrum Health. Spectrum Health is a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan that includes seven hospitals and a health plan, Priority Health.   

Dr. Thomas Peterson grew up in Michigan, and currently resides there with his family.  He received his bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, and his doctor of medicine degree from AUC Medical College in the British West Indies. In addition, he maintains membership in numerous professional medical societies, and currently serves as a member in six different committees and councils in Michigan, many of which focus on tobacco prevention. 

The annual Honors ceremony raises funds for life-saving programs and campaigns to keep young people from smoking, and to help Americans who want to quit get the services and support they need to stop using tobacco products. 

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Contact: Patricia McLaughlin, 202-454-5560; Kim Collins, 904-284-2773