Central Michigan University's interim dean of Health Professions Gregory Zimmerman has been appointed to Michigan’s Public Health Advisory Council by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
The council advises the governor and the director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services on emerging health issues. Zimmerman is tasked with representing Michigan schools of public health.
“Academic institutions are not only training the next generation of public health professionals, but we're also generating critical research and innovations that inform policy and practice,” he said. “My goal really is to bring a voice from a public health, education scholarship perspective to the table, ensuring our state strategies are informed by both science and the needs of communities.”
Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan’s chief medical executive and chair of the Public Health Advisory Council, said the council has already done successful work in the past such as state of public health reports and Public Health Call to Action recommendations.
For example, in 2023 they looked back at the COVID-19 pandemic and the state of public health in Michigan.
The council then came up with recommendations to improve the connection between public health and the healthcare system, awareness about public health among legislators and communications with the public.
“[The] Public Health Advisory Council is one of the best groups that I have the privilege of working with in our state,” Bagdasarian said. “It's a group of folks who are just so incredibly dedicated to public health, dedicated to the health of people in Michigan, really concerned about minimizing vulnerabilities and disparities and lifting up communities.”
Bagdasarian said one of the biggest issues she sees in the public health system is a lack of trust.
“I think that the COVID-19 pandemic and some of the misinformation that circulated around COVID-19 has spilled over onto other topics, and so now we're seeing a general public who is not trusting of messages coming out of public health,” she said.
Today, groups like the Public Health Advisory Council are talking about ways to build trust with different communities, and that’s why Bagdasarian said it’s important to have different voices on the council.
Coming from CMU, Zimmerman said he brings a voice and a perspective of rural and underserved communities to the table. CMU has been addressing the health needs of people from rural areas through applied research, education and community partners, he said.
That’s why, Zimmerman said, he’s committed to advocating for policies to promote access to quality rural healthcare.
“It's not uncommon for rural health to be on the back burner when it comes to attention, and for resources, they're sparse,” Zimmerman said. “There's inequity that exists.”
At the same time, he said both rural and urban communities in Michigan are facing several common public health challenges such as access to healthcare, upcoming changes in Medicaid, chronic diseases, substance use, environmental health and others, Zimmerman said.
To address these concerns and to improve the public health for all Michiganders, Zimmerman said he’ll work with other colleagues on the council and study the data surrounding these issues.
Zimmerman will serve on the council until Nov. 1, 2029.
Gov. Whitmer made two other appointments to the Public Health Advisory Council on July 10 as well. They are Paul Berg from MyMichigan Medical Group and Bernard “BJ” Costello III from Wayne State University.
Bagdasarian said she’s in the process of meeting all new appointees and is excited about the work they’ll do in the future.
