“I'm passionate about doing what I can to make the world a better place. How do you make a difference for the poorest of the poor? How do you address issues of social justice and social inequity?
I chose a career in medicine because I believe it is a fairly concrete way to address one of the most glaring inequalities: the difference between life outcome and life expectancy for people both in the United States and around the world. It's also the reason I chose public health work over clinical medicine. In public health, your patient is no longer an individual, but instead becomes a community, a society and, in some cases where you are eradicating diseases, the world.”
We must pay more attention to the needs of those who are most vulnerable and powerless. Less power means less voice and less access, and that inequity results in poorer health, poorer education and poorer overall welfare. In most developing countries, women and youth are the least powerful, and their needs are often neglected. The roots of the problems they face are often hidden, but we must strive to uncover, understand and address them.
Helene was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. She received her B.A. from Barnard College of Columbia University, New York. She received her M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins University. Helene is board certified in Pediatrics, completing a residency in Pediatric Medicine at the Children's Hospital National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. After completing her residency, she entered the Epidemic Intelligence Service, a training program in epidemiology, at CDC, followed by a residency in Preventive Medicine and then remained at CDC for a career that spanned 20 years and a variety of positions. She rose through the ranks at CDC to become the first director of the Director for the National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, (NCHSTP), at that time CDC's largest Center. At CDC, she was involved in studying problems of malnutrition in children in the United States and internationally, evaluating and implementing child survival programs in Africa and working on HIV/AIDS research, programs and policy. Her work on HIV/AIDS issues has focused on women, children, adolescents, U.S. minorities and international populations. On assignment from CDC, Helene also served as the AIDS Coordinator and Chief of the HIV/AIDS Division for the US Agency for International Development (USAID). She has served as a health consultant to international agencies including the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, the World Bank and UNAIDS and has worked extensively in Africa, Asia, and the Americas. She also served as the Director of CDC's Washington Office. She is also on the boards of the Institute of Medicine and the Council on Foreign Relations.
