To Our SPH Community,

The public health crisis in Gaza and the region is a matter of great urgency. As public health leaders, we understand the consequences of what is unfolding in Gaza – that unless urgent action is taken, the devastated healthcare and public health systems will lead to even more disease, suffering and death in the months ahead. We also have an opportunity to lay out evidence-based public health solutions to support civilians and improve this outlook now and into the future.

Following my message last month, and with input from students, faculty and staff, I am pleased to announce a series of events on the unfolding public health crisis affecting the Palestinian people in Gaza.

To begin, Dr. Michael VanRooyen, M.D., MPH will deliver this year’s Barnes Lecture. A world-renowned emergency physician, he is the founding director of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative and has led complex humanitarian operations in more than thirty countries affected by conflict and disaster. The event will be a conversation between me and Dr. VanRooyen on Tuesday, April 16 at 4:00 p.m. at the Providence Public Library. I encourage all of you to attend.

On April 26 at 1:00 p.m., we will host a special panel to better understand the Public Health Crisis in Gaza, featuring expertise from across the globe, including those with front-line experience in the Gaza healthcare crisis. Focusing on topics including health system resiliency and rebuilding infrastructure, this event will explore how we can build up the public health capacity of Gaza to save lives in the months ahead.

Finally, on May 3 at 1:00 p.m., Dr. Craig Spencer, emergency physician and associate professor of the practice of health services, policy and practice will lead an engaging workshop to provide a historical framework that helps participants contextualize the public health crises in Gaza, Sudan and elsewhere. This event is open to all students, faculty and staff.

Beyond events sponsored by the Dean’s Office, I continue to encourage our faculty to put forth their scholarly perspectives by organizing programming and events that bring a range of views to the public health challenges of this conflict. To ensure critical thinking about the widest possible range of solutions, it is essential to have a multitude of voices and perspectives on complex public health issues such as these. 

We can bring our empathy and attention along with evidence and expertise to the current crisis in the Middle East to explore how public health can be helpful. More than a hundred Israeli hostages remain captive in Gaza under horrific conditions. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are suffering from displacement, injuries, and inadequate access to health care, food, and water. While the conversations around these topics are difficult, I know we can engage in thoughtful and respectful dialogue as we explore the important role of public health in times of crisis. 

Please reach out to me through deanofsph@brown.edu with any questions or feedback.

Thank you for your commitment to engaging in these pressing global issues, and I look forward to seeing many of you at the events.

Sincerely,

Ashish K. Jha, M.D., MPH
Dean, School of Public Health
Professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice