When C. Charles Burlingame, M.D. came to The Hartford Retreat in 1931 as superintendent, he was taking on what he described as a “stunning challenge.”
The Retreat had not fared well in the years surrounding the stock market crash of 1929. The death of hospital superintendent Whitefeld Thompson, M.D. in 1930 had also taken its toll on the spirit of The Retreat.
During his tenure at The Retreat, the medical and nursing staffs were increased and additional personnel were brought in to carry out ambitious programs of patient education. At the same time, an aggressive program was begun to improve the hospital facilities. Within six years, Dr. Burlingame had created a model community where patients could receive the best in psychiatric treatment, while relearning the skills of daily living. But improved facilities and excellence in patient care were only part of Dr. Burlingame’s plan for the hospital; he intended it to become an institution which fostered the exploration of mental illness and the mind through research, and the development of mental health professionals through education.
Although more than 50 years have passed since Dr. Burlingame’s death, his mark is clearly visible on the institution to which he devoted the last 19 years of his life. The Digest of Neurology and Psychiatry has been published without interruption since 1932, and the Institute staff continue to gather for weekly lectures (Grand Rounds). The education of nurses has changed in focus, but resident physicians continue to receive training at The Institute, as do social workers, occupational therapists, and psychologists.
Today The Institute of Living is part of Hartford Hospital, serving as its behavioral health division. As we focus our efforts ever more intently on the value which research and education bring to our system of care, The Institute acknowledges its debt to the vision and dedication of Dr. Burlingame. The Burlingame Award was established in 1988 and has been presented annually since in recognition of outstanding leadership and lifetime achievement in psychiatric research and education.
2025 Recipient: Francis Gordon Lu, M.D., DLFAPA, FACP
The Hartford HealthCare Institute of Living has awarded the 2025 C. Charles Burlingame, MD, award to Francis Gordon Lu, M.D., DLFAPA, FACP, for his contributions to the areas of cultural psychiatry including the interface with religion and spirituality, psychiatric education, mental health equity, and psychiatry and film.
The Burlingame Award was established in 1988 and has been presented annually in recognition of outstanding leadership and lifetime achievement in psychiatric research and education.
Dr. Lu currently serves as the Luke & Grace Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry, Emeritus, at the University of California, Davis. He graduated from Columbia College in New York City and Dartmouth Medical School and completed his general psychiatry residency at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.
Dr. Lu has received many honors throughout his distinguished career including the Association for Academic Psychiatry Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008, Special APA Presidential Commendations in 2002 and 2016 for his contributions to cultural psychiatry, and The American College of Psychiatrists Distinguished Service Award in 2021. He has also led annual film seminars at Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA, since 1987, and Door County Summer Institute, Egg Harbor, WI, since 2014.
The award is named for C. Charles Burlingame, M.D., who came to The Hartford Retreat in 1931 as superintendent. Over the course of his career, he transformed the care and treatment of the mentally ill and, just as importantly, reframed the education of those who provide care to those patients.
Dr. Burlingame’s mark on the Institute of Living remains clearly visible to this day. The IOL is one of the oldest and foremost mental health institutions in the nation, having recently celebrated its 200th anniversary. It currently sponsors residency programs in adult psychiatry, child and adolescent psychiatry and psychosomatic medicine, and internships and postdoctoral programs in psychology.
Dr. Lu will be honored by colleagues at Hartford HealthCare Behavioral Health Network and the Institute of Living at an award ceremony in November, 2025.
Past Recipients
2024 - Allan Tasman, M.D.
2023 - Altha J. Stewart, M.D.
2022 - Boris Birmaher, M.D.
2021 - Herbert Y. Meltzer, M.D.
2020 - Ned H. Kalin, M.D.
2019 - Max Fink, M.D.
2018 - Kenneth Kendler, MD
2017 - Harold A. Pincus, M.D.
2016 - Steven S. Sharfstein, M.D.
2015 - David A. Brent, M.D.
2014 - Daniel R. Weinberger, M.D.
2013 - Nora D. Volkow, M.D.
2012 - Judith Rapoport, M.D.
2011 - Jeffrey A. Lieberman, M.D.
2010 - Professor Sir Michael Rutter, M.D.
2009 - David J. Kupfer, M.D.
2008 - K. Ranga Rama Krishnan, M.D.
2007 - Jerrold F. Rosenbaum, M.D.
2006 - Daniel N. Stern, M.D.
2005 - Herbert D. Kleber, M.D.
2004 - David H. Barlow, Ph.D.
2003 - Dilip V. Jeste, M.D.
2002 - Charles B. Nemeroff, M.D., Ph.D.
2001 - Paul S. Applebaum, M.D.
2000 - Lewis L. Judd, M.D.
1999 - Nancy C. Andreasen, M.D., Ph.D.
1998 - Lissy F. Jarvik, M.D., Ph.D.
1997 - Glen Gabbard, M.D.
1996 - Charles O’Brien, M.D.
1995 - Otto F. Kernberg, M.D.
1994 - Maurice J. Martin, M.D.
1993 - John C. Nemiah, M.D.
1992 - A. John Rush, M.D.
1991 - George Vaillant, M.D.
1990 - Dennis Cantwell, M.D.
1989 - William Carpenter, M.D.
1988 - Robert Kellner, M.D.