Public Health Leaders Meet to Share Innovative Strategies

In March, Dean Megan L. Ranney, MD, MPH, co-chaired an annual meeting of global academic public health leaders. They explored new ways to enhance public health education, community practice, and research.

Yale School of Public Health (YSPH) faculty and staff, including Dr. Ranney, led discussions at the conference organized by the Association of Schools and Programs in Public Health (ASPPH). The meeting focused on ideas to create a healthier world. YSPH members also represented the school on advisory committees that provide leadership on critical academic public health issues.

ASPPH, which supports over 150 accredited public health schools and programs, represents a community of more than 103,000 deans, faculty, staff, and students. Dr. Ranney's role as co-chair highlights YSPH's leadership in public health.

“It was a delight to co-chair this meeting,” Dr. Ranney said after the meeting in Arlington, Virginia. “Attendees represented a true cross-section of academic public health, ranging from students to deans to non-profits. We articulated a fabulous vision for the future of public health and worked to design thoughtful responses to current challenges.”

Dr. Ranney moderated a session on politics and health policies at the conference. Dr. Anne Zink, MD, a YSPH lecturer and senior fellow in the Department of Health Policy and Management, and Daniel Dawes, a presidential visiting fellow at the Yale School of Nursing, also spoke during the Opening Plenary.

Dr. Zink discussed how health policies shape the structural determinants of health, driving disparities in access to care, rural health, and public health funding. She used real-world examples like postpartum Medicaid expansion to show how data-driven policies can bridge gaps and improve outcomes.

With a focus on building systems of care, prioritizing people over bureaucracy, and finding common ground, she offered a critical look at challenges and a hopeful vision for policy-driven health equity.

Dr. Zink and Dawes emphasized that healthy economies are based on healthy people. Understanding the economic impact of public health work is “the lever for change.”

Dr. Ranney also moderated the panel discussion, “Taking Action Now: Preventing Deaths from Guns, Alcohol, and Drugs.” The expert panel discussed strategies to reduce harm by focusing on early intervention, education, and policy change.

Dr. Kathleen O’Connor-Duffany, PhD, MEd, assistant professor of public health (social and behavioral sciences), and Jason Martinez, MS, director of the Community Impact Lab, talked about, “Transformative Training through Community-University Co-design: RE-orienting MPH Programs with Early Community Engagement.”

They stressed the importance of community engagement in public health. When students arrive at YSPH, they join a system of public health partnerships that are built on decades of relationship and trust building. A critical component of being a public health researcher and practitioner is knowing how to address complex health issues by listening directly to the community’s needs, they said.

Dr. Mike Honsberger, PhD, director of academic affairs, urged schools to develop communities of learning for faculty. He noted that while research is often a team effort, teaching is usually done alone. His session aimed to evaluate teaching development programs by their effectiveness in promoting peer discussions about teaching.

Dr. Mayur Desai, PhD, MPH, moderated a session on fostering inclusive public health education by addressing racism, antisemitism, and LGBTQ+ health inequities. Desai is the associate dean for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging at YSPH and professor of epidemiology (chronic diseases).