'Behind the Blue': The Power of Public Health With Dean Donna Arnett
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 24, 2022) — People worldwide have had to adjust to living in a pandemic. One topic many people have learned more about during the past two years is the role of public health in our everyday lives.
In 2004, the University of Kentucky established the College of Public Health to develop transformative solutions to health challenges through teaching, research and service efforts. The college takes a serious approach to public health responsibility for all communities and individuals in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and beyond.
Residing in a state that is at the epicenter in some of our most major public health challenges, including obesity, cardiovascular disease and cancer, the College of Public Health is made up of six main departments: Biostatistics, Epidemiology, the Graduate Center for Gerontology, Health Management & Policy, Preventive Medicine & Environmental Health, and Health, Behavior & Society. These are all dedicated to transforming and assisting in the creation of a healthier community, state and world — for everyone.
Since 2016, Donna Arnett has been dean of the UK College of Public Health, and says we can see public health in every aspect of our lives. Arnett always knew she wanted to work in health care, and during her career fell in love with research, specifically epidemiology. On this episode of "Behind the Blue," Arnett talks about the hard work the College of Public Health has done during the pandemic in service to both students and community, as well as the promise and potential that comes from working in a state with such dramatic disparities in health.
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For questions or comments about this or any other episode of "Behind the Blue," email BehindTheBlue@uky.edu or tweet your question with #BehindTheBlue. Transcripts for this or other episodes of Behind the Blue can be downloaded from the show’s blog page.
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As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.
In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.