GDBHT 2021 Video Library

Dr. Bryan Heckman

Director, Center for the Study of Social Determinants of Health, Meharry Medical College

Dr. Heckman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Division of Public Health and the Founding Director of the Center for the Study of Social Determinants of Health (CSSDoH) at Meharry Medical College. Meharry is a global academic health sciences center advancing health equity through innovative research, transformative education, exceptional and compassionate health services, and policy-influencing thought leadership. As the Founding Director of Meharry’s Center for the Study of Social Determinants of Health (CSSDoH), Dr. Heckman leads transdisciplinary teams conducting innovative research on social conditions that affect the health and livelihood of underserved communities with a primary focus among racial and ethnic minorities. Key areas of research are leading causes of preventable deaths: tobacco and nicotine, substance use (opioids/alcohol), and COVID-19; and treatment adherence for chronic medical conditions: HIV/AIDS, cancer, diabetes, kidney, cardiovascular and mental health, and social justice. Across health domains, CSSDoH aims to streamline the ideation, development, evaluation, dissemination, implementation, and accessibility of digital tools to provide high impact, low-burden, and sustainable interventions to enhance care for underserved communities.  Dr. Heckman is also the Founding Director of Meharry’s equity-driven business incubator and training program, ResilienSeed. The incubator empowers traditionally-overlooked entrepreneurs by partnering with them and leveraging a vast network of subject matter experts, investors, and grant writers.

Dr. Jerome Adams

Presidential Fellow & Executive Director

Dr. Jerome Adams was appointed as a Presidential Fellow and the Executive Director of Purdue's Health Equity Initiatives on October 1, 2021.He is also a Distinguished Professor of Practice in the departments of Pharmacy Practice and Public Health.As the 20th U.S. Surgeon General and a prior member of the President’s Coronavirus task force, Dr. Adams has been at the forefront of America’s most pressing health challenges.

A regular communicator via tv, radio, and in print, Dr. Adams is an expert not just in the science, but also in communicating the science to the lay public, and making it relevant to various audiences.

Dr. Adams is a licensed anesthesiologist with a master’s degree in public health, and ran the Indiana State Department of Health prior to becoming Surgeon General. In the State Health Commissioner role he managed a $350 million dollar budget and over 1000 employees, and ledIndiana’s response to Ebola, Zika, and HIV crises. Notably, Dr. Adams helped convince the Governor and State Legislature to legalize syringe service programs in the state, and to prioritize $13 million in funding to combat infant mortality. As Surgeon General, Dr. Adams was the operational head of the 6000 person Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and oversaw responses to 3 back to back category 5 hurricanes, and to a once in a century pandemic.In addition to his recent COVID19 work, Dr. Adams has partnered with and assisted organizations as they navigate the opioid epidemic, maternal health, rising rates of chronic disease, the impacts of rising suicide rates in our Nation, and how businesses can become better stewards and stakeholders in promoting community health (https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/chep-sgr-business-leaders-digest.pdf)

Dr. Marta Jankowska

Associate Professor in Population Sciences, Beckman Research Institute at City of Hope Cancer Center

Dr. Marta Jankowska is an Associate Professor in Population Sciences at the Beckman Research Institute at City of Hope Cancer Center in Los Angeles, CA. As a health geographer, she is interested in most everything to do with spatial aspects of health and has a wide-ranging research agenda. In particular, she is passionate about merging multi-levels of health data from the microbiome and omics to biomarker outcomes, to health behaviors, to environmental exposures and structural racism policies.

Mary R. Grealy

President, Healthcare Leadership Council

Mary Grealy is president of the Healthcare Leadership Council, a coalition of chief executives of the nation’s leading healthcare companies and organizations. The HLC advocates consumer-centered health care reform, emphasizing the value of private sector innovation. It is the only health policy advocacy group that represents all sectors of the healthcare industry. She was appointed to the position in August 1999. She previously served as Washington Counsel for the American Hospital Association and was Chief Operating Officer and Executive Counsel for the Federation of American Hospitals.

Ms. Grealy has an extensive background in healthcare policy. She has led important initiatives on the uninsured, improving patient safety and quality, protecting the privacy of patient medical information, and reforming the medical liability laws. She testifies frequently before Congress and federal regulatory agencies.

Ms. Grealy has a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University and a law degree from Duquesne University. She served on the Board of Directors of TEAMHealth, one of the largest providers of outsourced physician staffing solutions for hospitals in the United States, and the Board of Directors of Duquesne University. She is Chair of the David A. Winston Health Policy Fellowship and serves on the board of the Women Business Leaders, the March of Dimes Public Policy Council, and the Susan G. Komen Public Policy Advisory Board. She is also a member of the American Health Lawyers Association. She is a frequent public speaker on health issues and has been ranked many times by Modern Healthcare as one of the 100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare and has been named to Modern Healthcare’s list of the Top 25 Women in Healthcare.

Dr. Matt McMahon

Director, SEED, National Institutes of Health

Matt leads the SEED Office (Small business Education and Entrepreneurial Development) in helping to transform cutting-edge technologies into products that improve health and save lives. The SEED team educates and assists NIH-funded innovators as they transition from discovery science to product development. SEED helps academic innovators validate the potential health impacts of their discoveries through a national network of proof-of-concept centers and provides a host of professional advisory services to small business innovators funded by NIH’s $1.2 billion/year SBIR and STTR programs. Matt has a diverse background in academia, small business, congressional policy, and NIH program management. He previously served as the first director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Office of Translational Alliances and Coordination, and he created and led the National Eye Institute’s Office of Translational Research. His previous experience also includes service as the principal scientist for the bionic eye company Second Sight Medical Products and as a staff member on both the United States Senate and House of Representatives committees responsible for science, technology, and innovation policy. Matt holds a B.S. in Optical Engineering from the University of Rochester and a M.A and Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of California, San Diego.