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Alumni Profile |
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| Dan Forsberg, RPA-C, MPH, CPH
Class of 2010
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Please tell us about some of your activities since your graduation from the MPH program?
After graduation in 2010, I have continued to run the Departments of Surgery,
Orthopedics and OB/GYN at Forest Hills Hospital, part of the North Shore- Long
Island Jewish Health System. This
community hospital is located in the middle of Queens, NY. Often cited as the most diverse county in the
country, Queens is populated by over 2.23 million people, 47% of whom were born
outside the US. 54% speak a language
other than English in their homes.
Ensuring that these people receive evidence-based medical care in a
compassionate environment that respects their cultural, religious, and ethnic
diversity is a challenge. Much of my
additional time is spent teaching surgery to Physician Assistant and
Osteopathic Medical Students in both didactic and clinical settings.
How has your MPH degree influenced your career?
I am much better able to navigate statistical and epidemiological
evidence. Wading through
the literature was a much more arduous task before my Stony Brook education. Now, the value of evidence
and its applicability is much clearer.
My ability to implement programmatic changes based on data is more
adroit, and my analyses help my opinions hold sway with my colleagues. I have begun adding themes of social
disparities, population health and resource utilization to my surgical lectures,
and I endeavor to improve my students’ evaluative skills. I am a better administrator, teacher, and
clinician because of the GPPH!
What advice would you give a new student just starting the program?
Stay as broad in your discipline as possible. Take that class about which you’ve been
wondering, get involved with OPHSA and participate in the larger community of
the program and the school. There are many avenues to achieve your goals. Keep
an open mind and explore. Posted Fall 2011
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