December 8, 2015

Rear Adm. Boris D. Lushniak retires from U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

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Cmdr. Kun Shen

Rear Adm. Lushniak exits the celebration through side boys with his wife, Dr. Patricia Cusumano, and younger daughter, Stephanie Lushniak.

BETHESDA, Md. – Rear Adm. Boris D. Lushniak, deputy surgeon general of the United States, was honored and celebrated in a retirement ceremony here at the National Institutes of Health on September 3. Dr. Lushniak, a dermatologist, preventive medicine specialist and family physician by training, faithfully served in the U.S. uniformed services as a U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS) officer for 27 years.

Dr. Lushniak joined the USPHS in 1988 and was stationed in Cincinnati at U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). In 2004, he transitioned to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and served as the chief medical officer of the Office of Counterterrorism. He was appointed as the FDA assistant commissioner, counterterrorism policy, and director of the Office of Counterterrorism and Emerging Threats in 2005.

Rear Adm. Lushniak receives “Old Glory” from Rear Adm. Peter Delaney.

Rear Adm. Lushniak receives “Old Glory” from Rear Adm. Peter Delaney.

Throughout his career he deployed for several national and international deployments including to: Bangladesh, St. Croix, Russia, Kosovo, New York; most recently he deployed to Liberia in support of the Ebola mission.

The culmination of his career was his assignment as deputy surgeon general in 2010 and then his transition into the role of acting surgeon general of the U.S. in 2013. Rear Adm. Lushniak valiantly served as the acting surgeon general for 18 months and during his tenure released the “50th Anniversary of the Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health” and launched the first “Call to Action to Prevent Skin Cancer.” He transitioned back into his role as deputy surgeon general in late December 2014, and served in this role until his retirement.

The retirement ceremony was witnessed by nearly 500 supporters in a packed auditorium. Many others viewed the ceremony remotely via broadcast. Attendees included family from the United States and Canada, friends, current and former colleagues, proud Ukrainian Americans – including members of the Ukrainian Medical Association of North America and members of Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization and his Orden Khrestonostsiv scouting fraternity – and fellow USPHS officers.

Distinguished guests were also in attendance including: Lt. Gen. Patricia Horoho and Vice Adm. Matthew Nathan, the surgeons general of the U.S. Army and Navy, respectively; Dr. Jonathan Woodson, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs; and Vice Adm. (ret.) Mike Cowan, former surgeon general of the U.S. Navy. Various high-ranking officials were part of the official party and participated in the ceremony, including: Dr. Karen DeSalvo, acting assistant secretary of health; Vice Adm. Vivek Murthy, surgeon general of the U.S.; Vice Adm. Richard Carmona, the 17th surgeon general of the U.S.; and, Rear Adm. Kenneth Moritsugu, former deputy surgeon general of the U.S.

The ceremony included remarks from the official party and military formalities including: the Old Glory Ceremony, a reading of the poem “The Watch,” and an invocation and benediction by U.S. Navy Capt. Salvador Aguilera. Rear Adm. Lushniak received numerous gifts and traditional military gifts, including a shadow box containing all of his medals, ranks, challenge coins, as well as the American flag that was flown at the Monrovia Medical Unit in Liberia.

It is important to note that Rear Adm. Lushniak was also awarded the Surgeon General’s Medallion by Vice Adm. Murthy, marking the second time he received this prestigious award. The Surgeon General’s Medallion is one of the highest USPHS awards and it is awarded at the sole discretion of the surgeon general for the highest level of contributions to initiatives of the surgeon general. It is rarely awarded and it is especially rare for an officer to be awarded it twice.

Rear Adm. Lushniak’s wife, Dr. Patricia Cusumano and their daughters, Stephanie and Larissa Lushniak, also participated in the ceremony and were honored and recognized for their full-fledged support of Dr. Lushniak’s USPHS commitments and additional professional endeavors.

There were lots of laughs during the ceremony, as senior officers shared stories of Dr. Lushniak in his professional career and personal life over the years. There were surprises: Rear Adm. Lushniak’s daughter Larissa was away at university and not physically in attendance at the auditorium, but participated in the ceremonious “Old Glory” via broadcast.

There was also a musical component; the USPHS Music Ensemble and Choral Group performed beautiful renditions of compositions at the conclusion of the ceremony, including a surprise Ukrainian song called “Chornobryvtsi.”

There were also tears of pride as everyone witnessed the official retirement of Rear Adm. Lushniak and the ceremonious retirement of his flag, followed by thunderous applause to acknowledge and celebrate Dr. Lushniak and all of his commendable work over the past 27 years in the USPHS.

Many of those offering remarks expressed their admiration of Rear Adm. Lushniak’s public speaking abilities. Dr. Jonathan Woodson described all of his speeches as “evangelical.” Another presenter, retired U.S. Army Col. James Currie of the Commissioned Officers Association, noted that all of his speeches were “TED Talks.”

It was no surprise that Rear Adm. Lushniak wowed the audience with an inspiring and hopeful speech towards the end of the retirement ceremony. He grabbed the wireless microphone and stepped down from the stage so he could deliver his remarks in a personal manner; he spoke directly to individuals describing the impact they had on his life and looked every audience member in the eye to remind them that “this is not the end.” USPHS officers in attendance left motivated to continue to fulfill the USPHS mission of protecting, promoting and advancing the health and safety of the nation.

This full-honors retirement ceremony was the largest in USPHS memory, clearly indicative of how many lives Dr. Lushniak had impacted throughout his personal life and professional career.

Fair winds and following seas, Rear Adm. Lushniak, fair winds and following seas.

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