User:D. Leigh Higgins

I have worked in the field of public health for 22 years - primarily as a civil servant. I worked at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 1988 - 2003 in the areas of HIV prevention and social determinants of health. I worked for the World Health Organization as the team lead for the Global HIV Testing and Counselling Programme from 2005 - 2009. I have provided expert consultations on the development, implementation, and evaluation of public health programs for private organizations. I completed a Master's Degree in Community Counseling at Georgia State University in 1986 and a Ph.D. in Public Health Medicine and Epidemiology in 2007 at the University of Nottingham.

My passion is co-developing programs that address social determinants of health and evaluating these efforts. I believe it is imperative that policy makers understand the relationship between health and poverty as expressed by the lack of education, poor access to jobs, no job training, inadequate housing, along with racism and other social ills.