<p>Barry D Weiss, MD is a professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. He also holds a professorshiin the Division of Geriatrics of the University of Arizonas Department of Medicine, and is an affiliate professor of public health in the College of Health Sciences at the University of Alaska Anchorage. He is former chairman of the Department of Family and Community Medicine at University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. <p>RESEARCH INTERESTS: Dr Weiss has been involved in the fields of health literacy and patient-physician communication for much of his professional career. His writings on these topics have been published in the em>New England Journal of Medicine< the em>Journal of the American Medical Association, and a variety of other medical journals and books. <p>Dr Weiss wrote the American Medical Associations em>Health Literacy< em>Manual for Physicians. He has served on health literacy advisory committees for the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association Foundation, the National Cancer Institute, the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and others. <p>Dr Weiss was a consultant to the Institute of Medicines Committee on Health Literacy and wrote a portion of the Institutes health literacy report. He is also the developer of the em>Newest Vital Sign< health literacy screening instrument. <p>EDITORSHIPS/PUBLICATION EXPERIENCE: Dr Weiss is currently the editor of em>FP Essentials, one of the American Academy of Family Physicians' largest continuing medical education programs, and associate medical editor of em>American Family Physician, one of the largest-circulation medical journals in the US. He served for 18 years as editor of em>Family Medicine< national journal of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine, and was editor of McGraw Hills ldquo;20 Common Problems&rdquo; textbook series. Dr Weiss is the author of more than 160 journal articles along with several books and book chapters, and he has been the recipient of more than 25 million in educational, research, and service grants and contracts. <p>CERTIFICATION: Dr Weiss is board certified in family medicine and holds a certificate of added qualification in geriatric medicine.