Six Health Professionals Selected for RWJF Health Policy Fellows Program at the National Academy of Medicine

July 13, 2015

National Academy of MedicineWASHINGTON — The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly the Institute of Medicine, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) today named the 2015-2016 class of RWJF Health Policy Fellows.  Beginning in September, the six health professionals selected will spend a year in Washington, D.C., working on health-related legislative and regulatory issues with members of Congress and the executive branch.  They will also engage in seminars and discussions on health policy and participate in leadership development programs. The fellows were chosen in a national competition for highly accomplished health, behavioral, and social science professionals who have an interest in health policy.  Their experiences in Washington will enrich their understanding of public policy formation and the ways federal and state government relate to the mission of their home institutions and local communities.  The fellows program will commence with a three-month orientation, followed by a nine-month assignment in a congressional office or the executive branch, where they will be involved in health legislation and programs.  After their Washington assignment, fellows will continue to receive support to sustain their development as health policy leaders. “With several critical areas of health policy remaining at the top of the federal agenda, this class of fellows  brings great expertise and health care experience to the decision making process,” said Marie Michnich, director of the RWJF Health Policy Fellows Program at NAM.  “It promises to be an exciting year ahead, one where the fellows will have ample opportunity to both contribute and learn.”

The 2015-2016 fellows are:

  • David Keahey, PA-C, M.S.P.H., assistant professor, department of family and preventive medicine, University of Utah Physician Assistant Program, Salt Lake City
  • Robert Mabry, M.D., director of trauma care delivery, U.S. Department of Defense Trauma Center of Excellence, Fort Sam Houston, Texas
  • Dayna Matthew, J.D., professor of law, University of Colorado Law School, Boulder
  • Thomas Mayes, M.D., M.B.A., professor and chairman, department of pediatrics, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio
  • Jeanette Roberts, Ph.D., M.P.H., professor, pharmaceutical sciences division, University of Wisconsin, Madison
  • Y. Claire Wang, M.D., Sc.D., associate professor, department of health policy and management, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York City

For more than 40 years the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has worked to improve health and health care. We are striving to build a national Culture of Health that will enable all to live longer, healthier lives now and for generations to come. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org. Follow the Foundation on Twitter at www.rwjf.org/twitter or on Facebook at www.rwjf.org/facebook. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, technology, and medicine.  The Academies operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln.

Contacts:

Jennifer Walsh, Senior Media Relations Officer Chelsea Dickson, Media Relations Associate Office of News and Public Information 202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu http://national-academies.com/newsroom Twitter: @NAS_news and @NASciences RSS feed: http://www.nationalacademies.org/rss/index.html Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nationalacademyofsciences/sets

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