UAlbany Celebrates National Public Health Week

The University is celebrating National Public Health Week through a series of events, April 4-8.

ALBANY, N.Y. (April 1, 2016) -- New York State Commissioner of Health Dr. Howard Zucker will join School of Public Health Dean Philip C. Nasca and University at Albany Vice President for Health Sciences and Biomedical Initiatives Laura Schweitzer to explore the ways in which the 30-year partnership between the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) and UAlbany’s School of Public Health (SPH) has advanced research, education and public health practice in New York.

The discussion, designed to will kick off National Public Health Week, will illustrate how this model can spur opportunities for government-academic cooperation in the health arena. The event will be held Monday, April 4 from 8:30 to 10:20 a.m. in the auditorium of the George Education Center at the School of Public Health.

The event sets the stage for month-long programming about the impact of health education and outreach featuring several SPH alumni who will discuss how the unique collaboration between NYSDOH and SPH has helped shape their own public health careers.

Additional programming includes:

• The Birkhead Lecture: Sponsored by the New York State Department of Health AIDS Institute and hosted by Dr. Zucker, the annual Birkhead Lecture is titled “From Epidemic to Ending the Epidemic.” The lecture will feature Dan O’Connell, director of the NYSDOH Aids Institute; Johanne Morne, director of the NYSDOH Office of Planning and Community Affairs; and Barbara Warren, director of the NYSDOH Perinatal HIV Prevention Program and Special Projects. The lecture will be held from 1-2 p.m. on April 4 in the Empire State Plaza Wadsworth Center’s Axelrod Auditorium, and will also be available online. The lecture is named in honor of recently retired Deputy Commissioner Dr. Guthrie (Gus) Birkhead of the Office of Public Health, the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Community of Practice. Dr. Birkhead also serves as a SUNY Professor of Epidemiology at the School of Public Health.
• Public Health Authority and Safe Drinking Water: On Tuesday, April 5 from 1-2 p.m., the School of Public Health will broadcast an American Public Health Association (APHA) webinar on the Flint Water crisis. The webinar will examine the regulation of drinking water quality as a health equity issue and identify some potential ways public health practitioners can address it. Specifically, presenters will describe the Flint water crisis and explain what role public health can help play in maintaining the quality of drinking water. The event will be held in 110A at the School of Public Health.
• International Night: The School of Public Health Graduate Student Organization (SPH GSO) will host its annual International Night celebration and fundraiser on Thursday, April 7 from 4:30 - 8 p.m. at the SPH Auditorium and Room 110A. International Night is a student-sponsored event organized each year by the SPH GSO. The funds raised at this year's event will be donated by the GSO to support the work of our Masters International student currently serving with the Peace Corps in Malawi and the Freedom from Fistula Foundation's clinic in Malawi.
• Accepted Student Day: The School will be hosting an Admitted Students Day on Friday, April 8. The event will provide admitted students with opportunities to visit the campus; learn more about the school, internships and international opportunities; speak with faculty members; and interact with current students and future classmates. Students who have already decided to enroll in the School may also attend an advising session and register for classes.

SPH's student chapter of the New York State Public Health Association has planned several activities being offered throughout the week as well. The full list of events is available through the School's online calendar.

National Public Health Week is also running in conjunction with the New York State Power Dialog, co-hosted by the University at Albany and Albany Law School. The event, held April 4-5, will feature public health students and presentations.

UAlbany’s School of Public Health, created through a memorandum of understanding between the University at Albany and NYSDOH, has advanced biomedical research, public health policy and program development, peer-reviewed scholarship, and teaching. This year, SPH is celebrating the 30th anniversary of this unique model of graduate public health education.

The School, initially located within NYSDOH with its staff as the founding faculty, has evolved to have an independent campus and full-time academic faculty, but remains closely linked with the Department of Health. The School and the Department work together to improve the health of the New York’s citizens by providing an academic focus to problems faced in health department practice settings.

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