MPHA Annual Conference and Meeting 2023

On November 16, 2023, over 400 registrants joined the 2023 Annual Conference and Meeting. The theme Beyond Buzzwords: Action for Health Equity provided a launching pad for critical conversations about the vision, strategies, and opportunities to advance health equity in meaningful ways. The program included keynote speaker, Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Commissioner of Public Health for the City of Boston, Dr. Robbie Goldstein, Commissioner for the MA Department of Public Health, and a panel of experts using community-informed data to drive change.

Use these links to access recordings and materials.

• Video playlist with the recordings
• Dr. Bisola Ojikutu’s slide deck
• Data in Action Panel slide deck
• MPHA Policy Updates and Spotlight on RTAs
• Conference Agenda and Sponsors

Click here to see the original events page, including sponsors and more.

Spring Awards Breakfast 2023

MPHA’s 21^st Annual Spring Awards Breakfast was held on June 2, 2023, at the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter to celebrate the critical work of public health and four health equity champions who work to advance equity every day. It was an inspiring moment that brought together our public health and healthcare communities in honoring the passion and integrity of our award winners!

MPHA’s highest honor, the  Paul Revere Award, was given to  Kevin Cranston, Assistant Commissioner and Director of the Bureau of Infectious Disease and Laboratory Sciences at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. This award is presented to an individual who has made an outstanding impact on public health in the Commonwealth. 

The Local Public Health Leadership Award was given to Dr. Matilde Castiel, Commissioner of the Department of Health and Human Services for the City of Worcester. This award is presented to an individual that has worked directly in municipal local public health and contributed their efforts to a more equitable, efficient, and effective local public health system. 

The  Lemuel Shattuck Award was presented to Adrienne (Andy) Epstein, RN, a member of the Brookline Advisory Council on Public Health and longtime public health activist. This award is presented to a person who has made a significant contribution to the field of public health.  

The Emerging Leader/Alfred Frechette Award was presented to Tiana Davis, Deputy Public Health Commissioner for the City of Springfield.  This award is presented to anyone under the age of 40 that has developed an innovative, unique, and original program and shows leadership and promise in public health or a related field in Massachusetts. Individuals in this category are “rising stars”. 

The Spring Awards Breakfast is an opportunity for the healthcare and public health communities to come together and celebrate the passion, integrity, and commitment of our colleagues. It provides both inspiration for the future and recognition of the critical work that is being done across this Commonwealth every day. 

We are so grateful to all of our supporters for attending this event! We could not have had this celebration of public health without you.

Thank you to our Sponsors!
For a full list click here

MPHA’s 2022 Annual Conference

With more than 400 attendees, MPHA’s 2022 Annual Conference & Meeting – Rooted in Community: Building Equity-Driven Policies – was a tremendous success. The event featured a keynote address by Dr. Lauren Smith, Chief Health Equity and Strategy Officer for the CDC Foundation, who discussed the importance of data collection as a means of measuring health inequities and developing effective strategies to address them. Other highlights included an inspiring video conversation with State Senator Liz Miranda, who shared her thoughts on public health and environmental justice, and a session run by MPHA Deputy Director Oami Amarasingham and Board Member and Boston University School of Public Health Associate Dean Dr. Craig Andrade on how MPHA works to implement our Health Equity Policy Framework. Finally, MPHA Staff and Policy Council Members unveiled our 2023-2024 Policy Agenda!.

Click here to watch the recording of the event

Full agenda & meeting materials

Recording of selected highlights

Thank you to our Sponsors! For a full list click here.

2022 Spring Awards Breakfast

MPHA held our 20th Annual Spring Awards Breakfast on June 3, 2022 in Boston. Mayor Michelle Wu and Boston Public Health Commission Executive Director Dr. Bisola Ojikutu provided the keynote remarks and received a special MPHA award, the Catalyst for Justice Award. Together, Mayor Wu and Dr. Ojikutu have championed transparency, reliance on clear data benchmarks, and a commitment to health equity in the city’s response to COVID-19.  They have also focused on achieving more equitable health outcomes by working to improve the social conditions in which Boston residents live, including access to healthy food and stable affordable housing.

MPHA’s highest honor, the Paul Revere Award for Lifetime Achievement, was given to to Ashish Jha, MD, MPH, in recognition of his outstanding impact on public health in the Commonwealth. Dr. Jha is a physician, health policy researcher, and a global expert on pandemic preparedness and response as well as on health policy research and practice. He served as the Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health until appointed by President Biden as the national Coordinator of the COVID-19 Response.  

We presented the first-ever Local Public Health Leadership Award to Phoebe Walker, Director of Community Services at the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG). In addition to her dedication to addressing the public health needs of the communities she serves, Ms. Walker has played a leadership role in the multiyear statewide advocacy effort to reform Massachusetts’ inefficient and inequitable local public health system. 

The Lemuel Shattuck Award was presented to Chien-Chi Huang, Executive Director of Asian Women for Health, a peer-led, community-based network dedicated to advancing Asian women’s health and wellbeing. In addition to founding Asian Women for Health, Ms. Huang has been a persistent advocate for the collection, analysis, and reporting of race and ethnicity data for Asian Americans, because without such data, health inequities among different Asian populations will never be visible nor effectively addressed. 

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