Anders Foldspang, Denmark
ASPHER Andrija Štampar Medallist, 2023 

Professor Anders Foldspang is professor emeritus at the Department of Public Health at Aarhus University, Denmark. During his career, he led a large number of public health education programmes, held expert positions in the Nordic region, was active in the Nordic Federation for Medical Education, was a member of the board of ASPHER and was President of ASPHER in 2006-2007.

Anders Foldspang was chair of the medical student movement at Aarhus University, Denmark, and member of the university’s Medical Faculty Council and its Medical Study Board in the early 1970’s, After medical graduation and PhD and DMSc defence (on the theme of: multivariate prediction of the outcome of vocational and social rehabilitation), he taught medical sociology/epidemiology to medical students and courses in basic epidemiologic and biostatistical methodology for PhD students of all medical specialties. In 1994, he founded the MPH course in Aarhus and was its lead until he in 2010 became Dean of the Nordic School of Public Health, Gothenburg. In 2011 he returned to Aarhus University, since 2018 as an emeritus professor.  

From 2006-2018, Anders Foldspang spearheaded and chaired the ASPHER Core Competency Programme, building and editing ASPHER’s European List of Core Competences for the Public Health Professional, since 2008 together with Chris Birt and, later, Robert Otok. Backed by ASPHER’s membership, it gave substantial support to demonstrate what a public health professional should know and be able to do, within all major parts of the public health discipline. The 2011 edition was endorsed by all European WHO member states as the basis for public health education and further editions were published in 2016 and in 2018 The fact that it continues to be used today is a tribute to his lasting and sustainable contribution to public health teaching and practice.

In 2005 Anders Foldspang together with ASPHER Director Thierry Louvet started ASPHER’s European MPH Programme. He was the first editor of ASPHER’s 40th and 50th anniversary books (2006, 2016). In 2013 he initiated ASPHER’s Honours Committee and was its first lead during four years. In recent times, he continues to actively engage in the ASPHER COVID-19 Task Force and published on the role of European Schools and University Departments of Public Health in the response to COVID. 

During many years he was socio-medical advisor within the municipality and later research consultant at the Rehabilitation and Research Center for Torture Victims (RCT), Copenhagen.  Following initial work together with colleague Svend Sabroe, on mapping the history of disability assessment since the viking ages, his research has focused mainly on population and clinical epidemiology and health services research, including the use of multiple logistic regression within a number of themes.  In 2018 Professor Foldspang was awarded an honorary fellowship of the UK Faculty of Public Health. His publication record is commendable with a Google Scholar h-index of 37, and i10-index of 65 and over 5,000 citations, thus demonstrating national and international visibility within and outside the scientific community.

Prof Foldspang has received several outstanding distinctions including: Knight of the Royal Danish Order of the Dannebrog; Honorary Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom (Honor FFPH); and Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (FRCPE); 1971 Gold Medal in Social Medicine, Aarhus University; 2022 Service Award, The UK Faculty of Public Health. 

In 2020 Anders Foldspang published a 68 page book for 4-8 year old children concerning a flying birthday cake ‘Lagkagebogen’ (The Birthday Cake Book). Text and illustrations by himself.

Photo credit: Barbara Katzin

About the Andrija Štampar Medal

Each year ASPHER awards the prestigious Andrija Štampar Medal to a distinguished person for excellence in the field of Public Health.

Doctor Andrija Štampar was born in the Croatian countryside 100 years ago. His parents were schoolteachers and moved around the country a lot. This gave him many opportunities to observe the daily life of the people. He qualified in medicine in Graz during the period of the Habsburg Empire. There was no medical school in Croatia at that time. In the 1920s he worked in a senior position in the newly created Ministry of Health in Belgrade. Apparently at this time he was very outspoken about what needed to be done.

In the period 1927-28, he founded the School of Public Health in Zagreb, with a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. From this base, he began to develop the public health system for the whole of Yugoslavia. As a result of these successful activities he was invited by the King to take up the cabinet post of Minister of the Interior. He accepted subject to certain conditions, which the King did not accept. Subsequently he went to China as an official of the League of Nations, and set up a fledgling public health system under its auspices.

He spent the period of the Second World War in prison, but in 1945 was appointed as Professor of Social Medicine in Zagreb. He also served as Dean of the Medical School and as President of the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Croatia. In 1946 he was president of the Interim Committee of WHO, charged with setting up its structures and constitution. It also drew up the famous definition of health. Professor Štampar was chairman of the first WHO General Assembly in 1948.

The Štampar Medalists since 1993:

Laurent Chambaud | 2022 ASPHER Deans' & Directors' Retreat - Sofia, Bulgaria 
Štampar Medalist 2022 | Short biographical sketch 
Laudation by Henrique Barros (ISPUP, University of Porto) 

Mike Ryan | Online webinar ceremony
Štampar Medalist 2021 | Short biographical sketch 
Laudation by Mary Codd (ASPHER Executive Board, University College Dublin) 

Selma Šogoric | 16th World Congress on Public Health - Online 2020
Štampar Medalist 2020 | Short biographical sketch
Laudation by John Middleton (President, ASPHER)

Gaetano M. Fara | XLI Annual Conference / 12th EPH Conference - Marseille 2019
Štampar Medalist 2019 | Short biographical sketch
Laudation by John Middleton (President, ASPHER)

Anne Johnson | XL Annual Conference / 11th EPH Conference - Ljubljana 2018
Štampar Medalist 2018 | Short biographical sketch
Laudation by Kasia Czabanowska (Maastricht University) 

Elina Hemminki | XXXIX Annual Conference / 10th EPH Conference - Stockholm 2017
Štampar Medalist 2017 | Short biographical sketch
Laudation by Henrique Barros (University of Porto) 

Richard Horton | XXXVIII Annual Conference / 9th EPH Conference - Vienna 2016
Štampar Medalist 2016 | Short biographical sketch
Laudation by Martin McKee (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) 

Jean Rochon | XXXVII Annual Conference / 8th EPH Conference - Milan 2015
Štampar Medalist 2015 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Laurent Chambaud (EHESP School of PublicHealth - Rennes)

Peter Piot | XXXVI Annual Conference / 7th EPH Conference - Glasgow 2014
Štampar Medalist 2014 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Yehuda Neumark (Hebrew University of Jerusalem)

Jose M Martin-Moreno | XXXV Annual Conference / 6th EPH Conference - Brussels 2013
Štampar Medalist 2013 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Miguel Angel Royo (Institute of Health Carlos III - Madrid) & Ted Tulchinsky (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) 

Julio Frenk | XXXIV Annual Conference / 5th EPH Conference - Malta 2012
Štampar Medalist 2012 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Jeffrey Levett (National School of Public Health - Athens)

Zsuzsanna Jakab | XXXIII Annual Conference / 4th EPH Conference - Copenhagen 2011
Štampar Medalist 2011 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Roza Adany (University of Debrecen)

Elias Mossialos | XXXII Annual Conference / 3rd EPH Conference - Amsterdam 2010
Štampar Medalist 2010 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Helmut Brand (Maastricht University)

Gudjon Magnusson | XXXI Annual Conference / 2nd EPH Conference - Lodz 2009
Štampar Medalist 2009 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Stojgniew Jacek Sitko (Jagiellonian University - Krakow) 

Ulrich Laaser & Theodore Tulchinsky | XXX Annual Conference / 1st EPH Conference - Lisbon 2008
Štampar Medalists 2008 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Anders Foldspang (Aarhus University) 

David Byrne | XXIX Annual Conference - Valencia 2007
Štampar Medalist 2007 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Jose M Martin-Moreno (EVES School of Publi Health - Valencia) 

Josep Figueras | XXVIII Annual Conference - Maastricht 2006
Štampar Medalist 2006 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Charles Normand (Lodnon School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) 

George Soros | XXVII Annual Conference - Yerevan 2005
Štampar Medalist 2005 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Aislinn O’Dwyer (University of Liverpool)

Theodor Abelin | XXVI Annual Conference - Caltanissetta 2004
Štampar Medalist 2004 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Stojgniew Jacek Sitko (Jaegiellonian University - Krakow) 

Martin McKee | XXV Annual Conference - Granada 2003
Štampar Medalist 2003 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Stipe Oreskovic (University of Zagreb)

Alexander Macara | XXIV Annual Conference - Zagreb 2002
Štampar Medalist 2002 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Jeffrey Levett (National School of Public Health - Athens) 

Ilona Kickbush | XXIII Annual Conference - Debrecen 2001
Štampar Medalist 2001 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Andreas Geiger (Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal)

Charles Mérieux | XXII Annual Conference - Aarhus 2000
Štampar Medalist 2000 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Pascal Chevit (Nationa School of Public Health - Rennes)

Richard Doll | XXI Annual Conference - Madrid 1999
Štampar Medalist 1999 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Richard Madeley (University of Notingham)

Lennart Köhler | XX Annual Conference - Torino 1998
Štampar Medalist 1998 | Short biographical sketch 
Laudatio by Arja Rimpelä (University of Tampere) 

Ferenc Bojan | XIX Annual Conference - Prague 1997
Štampar Medalist 1997 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Martin McKee (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)

Michel Manciaux | XVIII Annual Conference - Utrecht 1996
Štampar Medalist 1996 | Short biographical sketch 
Laudatio by Lennart Köhler (Nordic School of Public Health) 

Halfdan J Mahler | XVII Annual Conference - London 1995
Štampar Medalist 1995 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Evelyne de Leeuw (University of Limburg - Maastricht)

Donald Acheson | XVI Annual Conference - Krakow 1994
Štampar Medalist 1994 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Jeffrey Levett (National School of Public Health - Athens) 

Léo Kaprio | XV Annual Conference - Bielefeld 1993
Štampar Medalist 1993 | Short biographical sketch
Laudatio by Jeffrey Levett (National School of Public Health - Athens)