Former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy will visit Lincoln—again—tomorrow.
A little more than a year since the city hosted Murthy for a conversation on social media and youth mental health, the physician and former vice admiral will continue the dialogue with Lincolnites as part of the 37th season of the E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues.
Murthy will join Dr. H. Dele Davies—interim chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center—in a fireside-style chat to explore “ways to turn the challenges of loneliness and isolation into opportunities for deeper connection.”
“A Conversation with Dr. Vivek Murthy” will be held at the Lied Center for Performing Arts from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 14. The event is free and open to the public. Tickets can be reserved through the Lied Center here, by calling 402-472-4747 or by visiting the Lied’s box office (301 N. 12th Street). Forum events are general admission, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis.
Murthy served as the 19th and 21st surgeon general of the United States from 2015 to 2017 and again from 2021 to 2025, under Presidents Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. He became the first surgeon general of Indian descent. He co-chairs the World Health Organization’s Commission on Social Connection, a global effort to improve health outcomes through stronger human connection.
In 2023, Dr. Murthy released his landmark Surgeon General’s advisory “Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation” regarding the harmful impact of social media on youth mental health. He discussed similar topics in his 2020 book “Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World.”
This year’s Thompson Forum series is organized around the theme “Belonging: Finding Connection in a Lonely World” and explores the rising public health challenges of loneliness and isolation, highlighting the role of social connection in enhancing the health and well-being of individuals and communities. The event is co-sponsored by UNMC.
The E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues is a cooperative project of the Cooper Foundation, Lied Center and University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The series was established in 1988.
Watch Murthy’s 2024 Lincoln forum below.