Press Releases
GOV. MALLOY ANNOUNCES DR. JEWEL MULLEN WILL CONTINUE LEADING THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
(HARTFORD, CT) - Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced that he will re-appoint Dr. Jewel Mullen as Commissioner of the Department of Public Health (DPH) when his second term in office begins on January 7, 2015.
"With Commissioner Mullen leading the Department of Public Health, Connecticut has responded to several natural disasters and emerging health threats, such as Ebola, while also tackling chronic diseases and other issues that directly impact the public's health and well-being," said Governor Malloy. "Under her direction, DPH has transformed into a performance-based organization, one that ensures that no one in Connecticut is left behind when it comes to improving their health. She has the experience and expertise to keep us moving in the right direction, and I look forward to continuing our work to make Connecticut an even healthier state."
As commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Dr. Mullen oversees the state's leading public health agency. Appointed to this position by Governor Malloy in December 2010, Dr. Mullen has combined clinical work, research, teaching, and administration throughout a career focused on improving the health of all people, especially the underserved. A respected national leader, Dr. Mullen currently serves as president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), and on several federal health advisory committees.
"Governor Malloy has been extremely supportive of our efforts to make Connecticut a healthier state for all its residents, said Dr. Mullen. "I thank him for his confidence in my leadership, and look forward to continuing our work, alongside the dedicated staff at the Department of Public Health as well as our many partners, to further our vision for healthy communities across the state."
Under Commissioner Mullen's leadership, the department's major accomplishments include:
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Healthy Connecticut 2020 , a state health assessment and comprehensive plan that includes goals, objectives, and strategies to improve the health of Connecticut by 2020.
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Several initiatives that promote a culture of quality, including the completion of the LEAN process to improve programmatic areas, leadership training for over ten percent of agency staff, and an agency quality plan, which provides a comprehensive performance management framework for how DPH establishes, manages, deploys, and monitors quality throughout the agency.
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A new Office of Health Equity, which supports state and federal initiatives that emphasize the principle of health as a human right and social good for all people as well as the recognition that Connecticut residents hold multiple statuses in addition to race and ethnicity that may predispose them to toward health inequity.
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Recognition by the national organization representing local health departments for the state's five emergency planning and preparedness regions' ability to respond to public health emergencies.
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Live Healthy Connecticut , a coordinated chronic disease prevention and health promotion plan, which identifies achievable goals in 12 priority areas including obesity, diabetes, heart health, and asthma. The plan incorporates policy and systems changes that are likely to have the broadest and longest lasting impact.
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A successful expansion of the state's childhood vaccination program, which added three lifesaving immunizations to those available to Connecticut children across the state.
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An organizational five-year strategic plan that establishes a unified vision for the agency's future and the shared work ahead.
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Modernizing state hospice regulations to improve access to patients and families.
DPH is the center of a comprehensive network of public health services, and is a partner to local health departments for which it provides coordination and a link to federal initiatives, training and certification, technical assistance and consultation, and specialty services such as risk assessment that are not available at the local level. The agency, a source of accurate, up-to-date health information, monitors the health status of Connecticut's residents, sets health priorities and evaluates the effectiveness of health initiatives. The agency is a regulator focused on positive health outcomes and assuring quality and safety.
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For Immediate Release: December 15, 2014
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