NRC Spotlight Profile – Dr. Leandris Liburd, director of CDC’s Office of Minority Health and Health Equity

The National REACH Coalition would like to introduce the Center for Disease Control’s Associate Director for the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, Dr. Leandris Liburd. In this role, Dr Liburd has played a critical role in advocating for health equity among women and minority groups, “Dr. Liburd has been instrumental in building capacity across CDC and in public health agencies to address the social determinants of health, and in identifying and widely disseminating intervention strategies that reduce racial and ethnic health disparities” (Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, 2019).

Dr. Liburd is an acclaimed medical anthropologist who also serves as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health. Her main area of research is focused on community health issues and chronic disease prevention. Her extensive work centered on the importance of the social determinants of health and their impact on community health make her incredibly effective in her role as Associate Director for the Office of Minority Health Equity. Dr. Liburd has received numerous awards for her dedication to community health, and in 2010, Dr. Liburd received the National REACH Coalition’s Distinguished Service and Leadership Award for her work in addressing health inequities in the United States.

The Center for Disease Control’s Office of Minority Health Equity is dedicated to addressing minority health equity and women’s health issues through extensive research and funding community-based programs across the country (About OMHHE, 2020). Dr. Liburd’s leadership as Associate Director has greatly increased the scope of this office and continues to promote an innovative and diverse public health workforce.

References
About OMHHE – Minority Health – CDC. (2020, November 30). Retrieved December 28, 2020
Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (OMHHE). (2019, April 01). Retrieved December 28, 2020
Penman-Aguilar, Liburd, Dicent-Taillepierre, & Jack. (1970, January 01). Rollins School of Public Health. Retrieved December 28, 2020