Grand Rounds in Population and Public Health Sciences

21st century Americans must increasingly cope with “modern” life compounded by the inescapable effects of a heating planet: increased heat waves and febrile oceans, inexorable storm violence and lost insurance, wildfires and smoke-filled air, and frightening asocial behavior and an epidemic of loneliness. Jackson will explore some of the underlying forces and reflect on physical environment changes that can deliver more health and, yes, perhaps happiness.

Richard J. Jackson, MD, MPH, FAAP, HonAIA, HonFASLA is Professor emeritus at the Fielding School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he was Department Chair in Environmental Health Sciences. A pediatrician, he served as State Health Officer for the California Health Department and as Director of the CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health for 9 years, for which he received the Presidential Distinguished Service Award. He was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2011 and has been leading its Health and Climate Interest Group since 2019. Jackson was instrumental in establishing the California Birth Defects Monitoring Program and in the creation of state and national laws to reduce risks from pesticides, especially to farm workers and to children. While at CDC he established major environmental public health programs and instituted the federal effort to “biomonitor” chemical levels in the U.S. population. He also co-authored the books: “Urban Sprawl and Public Health, Making Healthy Places”, and “Designing Healthy Communities,” for which he hosted a four-hour PBS series. Jackson has received many awards, such as the Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Public Health Law Association; the John Heinz Award for national leadership in the Environment; the Sedgwick Memorial Medal from the American Public Health Association, and the Henry Hope Reed Award for his contributions to Architecture and Planning. He and his spouse, Joan Guilford, live in Berkeley, California, and have three adult children and seven grandchildren.

Moderator:

Rob McConnell, MD

Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Panelists:

Erika Garcia, PhD, MPH

Assistant Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Bhavna Sharma, PhD

Assistant Professor of Architecture

USC School of Architecture

John Wilson, PhD

Professor and Founding Director

USC Spatial Sciences Institute

Los Angeles County is home to almost 10 million people, with a rich diversity of populations. In this event, Dr. Shetgiri will present the latest data on the health of Los Angeles County residents. Included will be data on life expectancy, mortality, morbidity, and the underlying social, economic, and environmental conditions that impact health, also known as the social determinants of health. Data will include findings from the recently released Los Angeles County Health Survey and the 2024 Los Angeles County Community Health Profiles. Dr. Shetgiri will present trends in these indicators and will examine racial and ethnic as well as geographic inequities in health outcomes and the conditions that contribute to optimal health and well-being. She will provide examples of how the data can be used to address health inequities.

Rashmi Shetgiri, MD, MSHS, MSCS is the Chief Science Officer at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Dr. Shetgiri provides leadership for the scientific efforts of the department, with a focus on equity-centered research and data-driven public health practice to address health inequities in Los Angeles County. She is a pediatrician and health services researcher. She has conducted research on bullying, youth violence prevention, and addressing racial and ethnic disparities in health, and is the first author of a book on bullying prevention. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she has held several leadership positions in the response effort at the Department of Public Health.

Moderator:

Howard Hu, MD, MPH, ScD

Flora L. Thornton Chair and Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Panelists:

Max Aung, PhD

Assistant Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Jeffrey Klausner, MD, MPH

Professor of Clinical Population and Public Health Sciences

Jane Steinberg, PhD, MPH

Associate Professor of Clinical Population and Public Health Sciences

Dr. Noura Abul-Husn, MD, PhD is the Vice President of Genomic Health at 23andMe. She leads 23andMe’s clinical strategy to integrate consumer genetics into healthcare and provides genomic medicine expertise to direct company-wide health initiatives. In addition to her leadership role at 23andMe, Dr. Abul-Husn is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and a principal investigator in the NIH-funded eMERGE (electronic Medical Records and Genomics) Network.

Dr. Abul-Husn is a physician scientist and expert in personalized healthcare and genomic medicine. She previously served as founding Chief of the Division of Genomic Medicine and Clinical Director of the Institute for Genomic Health at Mount Sinai, overseeing multi-disciplinary teams of clinicians and researchers to spearhead genomic research, education, and care delivery innovation. Prior to that, she served as Director of Translational Genetics at the Regeneron Genetics Center. She has spoken and published extensively on her research spanning genomic discovery, genomic medicine, and health equity.

Dr. Abul-Husn is a double board-certified Internist and Medical Geneticist. She completed her MD, PhD, and residency at Mount Sinai in New York, and was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including a 40 under 40 Rising Star Award and the Dr. Michael S. Watson Genetic & Genomic Medicine Innovation Award from the ACMG Foundation for Genetic and Genomic Medicine.

Moderator:

David Conti, PhD

Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Panelist:

Charleston Chiang, PhD

Assistant Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Panelist:

Marlena Fezjo, PhD

Clinical Assistant Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Panelist:

Jim Gauderman, PhD

Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences