Dr. John Lantos to receive Endowed Chair

The Bioethics Center team (now in its tenth year) just completed another nine-month Certificate in Pediatric Bioethics education program and had gathered with the graduates of the seventh graduating cohort to celebrate with dinner at Novel in the Crossroads. But, the team wasn’t there just to celebrate graduation.

Dr. Michael Artman (pictured right) had an extra surprise up his sleeve for John Lantos, MD (pictured center). During the dinner, Dr. Artman and Cheri Glasnapp Wright (pictured left), President of the Glasnapp Foundation, made the special announcement. The Glasnapp Foundation has decided to fund an endowed position for Dr. Lantos: The Glasnapp Foundation Endowed Chair in Bioethics. Dr. Lantos will be officially invested in this position at the next Investiture ceremony.

“This is the largest gift ever from our Foundation and John is the right person to lead this effort,” said Cheri Wright.

Along with serving as director of the Bioethics Center, Dr. Lantos also serves on the ethics committee at Children’s Mercy. He is a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine and a Research Professor at Kansas University Medical Center. His work in pediatric bioethics spans three decades and has focused on ethical dilemmas associated with innovations in clinical care for children and adolescents. He is the past president of the two leading bioethics organizations in the United States, the American Society of Bioethics and Humanities and the American Society of Law, Medicine, and Ethics. He has shared his expertise during appearances on Oprah, Larry King Live, and Nightline. Dr. Lantos has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed articles and eight books, with two more in press.

The Bioethics Center at Children’s Mercy is one of only three pediatric bioethics centers in the United States. The Center was founded in 2009 by Dr. Lantos. Since then, he has been joined by Brian Carter, MD, Jeremy Garrett, PhD, Angie Knackstedt, BSN, RN-BC, Vanessa Watkins, MPH, FACHE, CHES, and Jennifer Pearl, BS. They work closely with the Children’s Mercy Ethics Committee and Nurse Ethics Forum to help clinicians and families identify and respond to ethical dilemmas in pediatric clinical care and research.

The Glasnapp Foundation Endowed Chair in Bioethics is made possible by the Glasnapp Foundation, a locally operated, private foundation that supports education, health care and faith-based causes. In addition to serving as President of the foundation, Cheri Wright has been a supporter of Children’s Mercy herself since 2011. Bioethical issues and advancements are key interests of Cheri’s as she considers knowledge-sharing to be a critical component of advancing health care. Cheri also volunteers in the NICU as well as the Oncology and Burn Units and serves in an advisory role in the Children’s Mercy Bioethics Department.

Learn more about the Bioethics Center at Children's Mercy.