Associate Professor Champions Health Equity Through Career in Public Health

India Rose, PhD, MPH, CHES, associate professor for Chamberlain’s Master of Public Health (MPH) program, has a passion for addressing health disparities and achieving health equity, especially among the most vulnerable and marginalized communities in the U.S., including the nation’s youth.

“One thing I know with 100% certainty is that the work I do in this field impacts the health and overall well-being of young people in the United States,” she says. “That is something that motivates me daily.”

When describing the importance of her role in public health, Dr. Rose says, “I would tell someone that a healthcare professional helps one person at a time. A public health professional helps entire communities at a time. It’s my goal as a public health professional to protect the health of populations from small communities to the entire country.”

“Public health is a field that connects us all, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or socioeconomic status.”

Dr. Rose started her career at the Institute for HIV Prevention Leadership, after completing her postdoctoral fellowship with the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. She served as a public health consultant with the federal government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before she joined Chamberlain.

“What motivates me in my career is working with interdisciplinary teams to solve the nation’s greatest public health challenges,” says Dr. Rose. “From my time as a public health consultant with the federal government to collaborating with Chamberlain’s Master of Public Health program, I strive to make the greatest impact on the public’s health on a local, state, and national level.”

Making an impact is certainly something she has done in her career. Her research focuses on understanding the impact of psychosocial factors on adolescent risk-taking behavior, and she is experienced with addressing the unique health needs of special populations including sexual and gender minority youth.

The significance of her work is apparent in the outcomes of the research. When she worked as a consultant to a youth agency, Dr. Rose identified a gap in programs and resources specific to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or questioning/queer (LGBTQ+) youth and worked to design resources for this population and their parents. Especially important was the knowledge that with higher rates of family rejection there are significantly poorer health outcomes among LGBTQ+ youth, including suicide attempts.

“I knew there was a need to connect both LGBTQ+ youth and their parents to resources,” says Dr. Rose. “I worked closely with the agency as well as community stakeholders to design programs and services that this agency still offers today. I conducted extensive research with parents of LGBTQ+ youth, and this research has provided the field with a baseline understanding of strategies to improve parent-child communication among a community that is often overlooked.”

Dr. Rose has been recognized for her work and her passion for public health. She is a recipient of the South Carolina Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award for her commitment to advance health outcomes of the LGBTQ+ community. It is an accolade that not only highlights the importance of the public health field, but her commitment to social justice and health equity.

“Public health is everywhere. Public health is a field that connects us all, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or socioeconomic status,” says Dr. Rose.

For those who are curious about a career in public health, Dr. Rose offers the following: “This is one of the most exciting fields that you can be a part of if you are passionate about improving the overall health and well-being of communities.”

Interested in making an impact in your community as a public health professional? Explore Chamberlain University’s Master of Public Health (MPH) program.

By Chamberlain University