Considering all aspects of a person’s health is crucial to delivering the best care possible. That’s why Rachel Hogg-Graham, DrPH, MA, assistant professor in clinical leadership and management and human health sciences, is focused on ensuring College of Health Sciences’ students have a holistic understanding when examining today’s emerging health issues.

Hogg-Graham started out studying the history of health and medicine and became particularly interested in health policy and how past events inform future events. Her primary research focus lies in multisector approaches that integrate health and social services to address population health.

“What drew me initially to the College of Health Sciences was its two undergraduate programs: human health sciences and clinical leadership and management,” she said. “Our programs give students a well-rounded perspective of health by looking at the effect of health policy, understanding the health system, understanding social determinants of health, questions of health ethics, and how we treat the person as whole.”

Training allied health professionals to have an appreciation of all parts of the health care system will be integral in shaping how the clinical professions participate in collaborative approaches to care. “A big challenge in the American health care system is the fragmentation and the lack of coordination between different types providers and organizations,” she said. “This fragmentation causes real inefficiencies in the system and undermines care.”

According to Hogg-Graham, the growing emphasis on understanding the social and economic factors that influence health calls for practitioners who are culturally competent and aware of the complex interaction between health and social need.

“The College of Health Sciences is serious about training professionals to consider all aspects of health and training our students to think beyond acute medical events,” she said. “How do we ask questions that might sometimes be sensitive (food insecurity, domestic violence, etc.)? It’s important for our students to understand that people come from different backgrounds, perspectives, and cultures—all these play into a person’s health.”

When thinking about some of the most pressing health conditions in the United States, the growing number of individuals with chronic conditions and the opioid epidemic may immediately come to mind. Hogg-Graham believes taking an interdisciplinary and multisector approach is needed to solve these major population health crises.

“CHS is actively growing collaborations with the other health care colleges on campus and building important relationships with community partners. Working across disciplines will be critical in answering some of these pressing health issues,” she said. “I think CHS can play a role in helping to pioneer that work and provide a unique disciplinary perspective in investigating solutions to health care issues across the state and nationally.”

As the health care system continues to change, providers and researchers are all being asked to think about health care differently than how it has historically been done. With that comes both challenges and opportunities, especially for students.

“I would encourage students to read as much as they can about the changes occurring in the U.S. health system, because they are happening rapidly,” she said.

Hogg-Graham also advises students to actively participate in research happening in the college and at the University. “Ask faculty about their research. What are they studying? What implications might that work have for my future as a health care provider?” she said. “This opens up a doorway for students to actively explore solutions related to health at the national and local levels.”