While a COVID-19 vaccine could be available in a matter of weeks, offering much-needed hope at the end of a grim and challenging year, a University of Maryland expert urges public health leaders and other authorities to begin communicating about the approval process and the vaccine’s safety and effectiveness right away.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, people have accessed health care appointments and services in a virtual format more than ever before. A new study by the University of Maryland School of Public Health found that hospitals in rural areas faced more barriers in adopting these telehealth approaches than those in urban areas.
Each month, our Happiness and Wellness Initiative will share "Some Good News" from the SPH and our extended community. You can submit your own good news by email to: happyandwell@umd.edu.
Rep. John Lewis spent decades of his life working as an organizer and activist to further racial justice, equity and to address intersecting issues of inequality. With wisdom from his longstanding years of anti-racist activism and service in the House of Representatives (1987-2020), Rep. Lewis often reminded society to be in the struggle, and do so with hope and optimism. In a 2018 tweet, he encouraged those engaged in social justice activism, “Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
The School of Public Health Alumni Network received the Event of the Year Award at the University of Maryland Alumni Association's 2020 Volunteer Leadership Conference. The association recognized the SPH for its 2020-2021 SPH Alumni Mentor Program Kickoff Event and efforts to develop and grow the School of Public Health Alumni Mentor Program.
In October, UMD students who are a part of the Free the Vaccine Campaign (a group advised by HPM’s Melvin Seale), joined a Funk Rally in Washington D.C. to advocate for publicly funded medicines, including a COVID-19 vaccine, that are affordable and accessible for all. With a coalition of organizations such as Oxfam, UNIAIDs, Public Citizen, Space in Action, Gogo DC, and many more, the group rallied with music and a positive spirit to bring attention to the issue and to demand that the Department of Health and Human Services ensures a safe and effective vaccine for all in the coming months.
