COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Over the last year, more than 20 members of the UMD School of Public Health community - alongside colleagues throughout the state - have been steadily working toward a single ambitious goal: shaping the future of public health in Maryland.
As part of the Maryland Commission on Public Health and its workgroups, the group has been charged to assess and make recommendations to improve the public health infrastructure and services in every part of the state. Established in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and other health crises, the Maryland General Assembly created the Commission following the signing of House Bill 214 by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.
The Commission began its work in December 2023, with its meetings public and recorded. Now halfway through its term, it has released a 2024 Interim Report, outlining the review of areas including governance, funding, workforce, data and information technology, and communications and public engagement.
“Our goal is to ensure that the backbone of public health in our great state can meet the urgent needs ahead, so that all Maryland citizens can access the tools and services they need to be healthy,” said Commission co-chair Dr. Boris Lushniak, dean of the UMD School of Public Health and former acting U.S. surgeon general.
Lushniak was appointed to the role by Gov. Moore, alongside co-chairs Dr. Meenakshi Brewster, health officer in the St. Mary’s County Health Department, and Dr. Oluwatosin Olateju, assistant professor of nursing at Coppin State University and adjunct professor at Morgan State University.
“Our goal is to ensure that the backbone of public health in our great state can meet the urgent needs ahead, so that all Maryland citizens can access the tools and services they need to be healthy."
The Commission’s interim report outlines the group’s large-scale and diverse efforts to understand the current public health landscape locally, nationally and globally. In addition to holding regional listening sessions and other public engagement, the committee has reviewed innovative and effective practices – including during a visit with Indiana public health officials and in presentations at national health conferences – and consulted both scientific literature and a variety of expert sources.
“Hearing the voices of the community and ensuring representation is a core belief of our workgroup,” said Dr. Sylvette La Touche-Howard, SPH Assistant Dean of Public Health Practice and Community Engagement and co-chair of the Commission’s Communication and Public Engagement Workgroup. “We were intentional in involving all counties and the multiple organizations that are within them. We strongly believe that representative data enables meaningful insights, ensures the relevance of recommendations and fosters trust. The community’s input ensures our health solutions are connected to people that we aim to serve.”
The Commission’s next steps include an expanded effort to understand the needs, perspectives and ideas of the people most affected by the state’s public health apparatus: Marylanders. Through surveying the public, conducting a focus group with front-line public health workers and taking greater steps toward boosting relationships between state and local government health departments, the Commission will gather key data. The Commission aims to begin making draft recommendations by March 2025, with time afterward for public review and comment. A final report is expected in the fall.
Members of UMD’s School of Public Health are prominent throughout the areas of Commission work. SPH contributors include:
- Assessment Team: Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives Dr. Amelia Arria, Senior Strategic Analyst Brittany Bugbee and Dr. Malinda Kennedy and Grace McManus, the project director and faculty specialist - respectively - of the SPH Center on Young Adult Health and Development.
- Communication and Public Engagement Workgroup: Horowitz Center for Health Literacy Director Dr. Cynthia Baur and Associate Clinical Professor and Director of Online Graduate Studies Dr. Negin Fouladi, alongside co-chair La Touche-Howard.
- Data and Information Technology Workgroup: Director of the Global Health Undergraduate Program Dr. Hassanatu Blake and Associate Professors Dr. Marie Thoma and Dr. Xuanzi Qin.
- Workforce Workgroup: Experiential Learning Manager Shannon Edward, Associate Professor Dr. Mona Mittal, Assistant Dean of Public Health Practice and Community Engagement Dr. Tracy Zeeger and Lushniak.
SPH Assistant to the Dean Michelle Kong is providing support to the commission as a whole and the Workforce Workgroup.
Many SPH students support the efforts as interns, helping craft the state’s goals even before graduation. These students are: Hawi Bekele Bengessa, Agnes Bernadine, Chamodi Jayasiri, Maryam Hashmi, Duncan MacGowan Coltharp, Shinel Mullings and Selma Osman.
Read more about the report in a state of Maryland news release.
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The University of Maryland School of Public Health empowers the next generation of public health professionals to lead in achieving optimal and equitable physical, social, and mental health and well-being for all. Established in 2007 at one of the nation’s leading research institutions, our School has more than 30 academic programs — including bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and certificate programs, in-person and online options – and specialties from global health to family health, kinesiology to epidemiology to health policy, and so much more. At the UMD School of Public Health, we cultivate an educational experience that prepares students to make a positive difference in the world.