Public health leader Dr. David M. Carlisle to discuss his experiences in working to eliminate health disparities at UCLA event

Dr. David M. Carlisle, president and CEO of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, will speak about his work to eliminate health disparities at this year’s Lester Breslow Distinguished Lecture, which the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health will host on April 16 at 6 p.m. at Covel Commons.

“Public health practitioners are uniquely positioned to improve the health of people across all geographic and socioeconomic divides. I’m honored to have been asked to speak about my work in this area,” said Dr. Carlisle, who earned his Master of Public Health and PhD in Health Services from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.

Dr. Carlisle, a member of the Fielding School of Public Health Board of Advisors, has dedicated his career to caring for people traditionally underserved by the medical community. He is the immediate past director of the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development where he worked on the Office’s first health disparities report, helped draft a policy to develop a health workforce data clearinghouse and increased scholarship and loan repayment opportunities for health providers committed to practicing in underserved communities. From 1985-2013 Dr. Carlisle worked as a volunteer doctor at the Venice Family Clinic where he currently serves as a member of its Foundation Board. He is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a senior fellow at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

The Lester Breslow Distinguished Lecture honors the memory Dr. Lester Breslow, a former dean of the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health who authored several groundbreaking public health studies that were among the first to show that people with healthy habits can live longer.

During the event, students from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health will speak about how public health practitioners can become involved in policy as a way to ensure everyone in the U.S. has access to healthcare and a healthy environment. The presentations are part of the annual Student Public Health Challenge, a competition that helps Fielding School students foster public speaking and presentation skills.

The Lester Breslow Distinguished Lecture was made possible through a gift from the late Betty J. Goodman and Dr. Raymond D. Goodman, a former student of Dr. Breslow. The evening will be dedicated to remembering and honoring the public health contributions made by Dr. Goodman, a 1972 graduate of the Master of Public Health program at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health who passed away in February.

Click here to learn more about the event. Kindly note that RSVPs are required.

The UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, founded in 1961, is dedicated to enhancing the public's health by conducting innovative research, training future leaders and health professionals from diverse backgrounds, translating research into policy and practice, and serving our local communities and the communities of the nation and the world. The school has 650 students from more than 35 nations engaged in carrying out the vision of building healthy futures in greater Los Angeles, California, the nation and the world.