Public Health at UC Merced
Public Health is a multidisciplinary area of research and study that focuses on measuring, understanding and improving the health of the population, including assessing the health needs of vulnerable populations, understanding the causes and determinants of health challenges and problems, and identifying ways to improve the public health system and the health of the population. But Public Health is more than that...it is a way of engaging communities and building partnerships to address some of the pressing health issues facing society. To learn more about public health priorities, activities, and impacts, visit the ASPPH web site.
Nowhere are public health issues more important than in the San Joaquin Valley of California. While a place of natural beauty and diverse, vibrant populations, it is also a region with some of the greatest health disparities in the country. Indeed, a major reason for the establishment of the Merced campus of the University of California was to improve the condition of the population of the San Joaquin Valley (SJV), which trails the rest of California on almost all socioeconomic and health risk indicators and is comparable to the poorest Appalachian sub-region. If this region were a state, it would rank about 48th in per capita income based on U.S. Census Bureau data.
The Public Health faculty at UC Merced are committed to addressing these issues through research, teaching, and service to the community. Public Health is led by a multidisciplinary group of faculty with an expertise in both Prevention Sciences and Population Health, and research interests that include:
Updated 2021
