Iowa Institute of Public Health Research and Policy

Anjali Deshpande, PhD, MPH, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Director of the Master of Public Health program at the University of Iowa, College of Public Health in Iowa City, IA. Her areas of research interest include disparities in health behaviors and disease outcomes related to cancer as well as the impact of multimorbidity (multiple co-existing chronic health conditions) on quality of life outcomes of older adults. Dr. Deshpande teaches graduate level courses in epidemiology and public health and has been part of the national Evidence-Based Public Health (EBPH) training team since 2009. Prior to joining the life of an academic in 2003, Dr. Deshpande was the consultant epidemiologist for the Division of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (MDHSS). In that role, she worked with chronic disease programs in the development and evaluation of programs, as well as with the Missouri Cancer Registry and BRFSS surveillance programs in data collection and analysis. Dr. Deshpande was an epidemiology specialist in the Communicable Disease Division at the Oklahoma State Department of Health during her MPH training. She holds an MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and a PhD in Epidemiology from Emory University.

Vickie Miene, MS, MA, LMHC is the Interim Director of the Iowa Institute of Public Health Research and Policy and an Assistant Adjunct Professor in the Department of Health Management and Policy, at the University of Iowa, College of Public Health. The Institute brings together public health practitioners, researchers, community leaders and policy makers to expand the impact of public health research and improve the health of populations. Ms. Miene has over 25 years of experience building and evaluating effective community based health care delivery models. Vickie lead a multimillion dollar, multi-year federally funded System of Care in 10 counties of NE Iowa, which gained national recognition as the first SOC that effectively combined social support and medical systems through an integrated team-based model of care. Ms Miene has lead statewide training and technical assistance initiatives focused on integrated health, large scale quality improvement initiatives, and peer support services for the chronically mentally ill. Vickie currently co-leads a RWJF supported INVEST Health initiative to improve health among low income populations through creating partnerships between health and housing sectors. She has conducted various qualitative studies, most recently an assessment of Iowa public health data needs.

Alexa Andrews, MPH is the Program Coordinator for at the Iowa Institute of Public Health Research and Policy at the University of Iowa, College of Public Health in Iowa City, IA. She recently graduated with her MPH with a concentration in Occupational and Environmental Health from the University of Iowa, College of Public Health. During her time as a student at the University of Iowa, she worked on multiple healthy homes initiatives. Mrs. Andrews worked with the IIPHRP to plan and deliver a healthy homes symposium in conjunction with the City of Iowa City that pulled together a multitude of stakeholders to better the health of this city through housing and healthcare partnerships. After her work on INVEST Health, she began working on the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program project as a Graduate Research Assistant. Since graduation she has transitioned into the Program Coordinator of the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program project at the IIPHRP.