Former CDC Director Rochelle Walensky speaks on career and critical juncture in public health

and | Contributing Writer and Staff Writer

Dr. Rochelle Walensky speaks to Dr. William G. Powderly in Graham Chapel. (Sam Powers | Student Life)

Former Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Dr. Rochelle Walensky, AB ‘91, spoke at Graham Chapel as part of a celebration of several new undergraduate Public Health and Society programs, April 11. 

Washington University’s College of Arts & Sciences and Institute of Public Health hosted Walensky, who spoke about her career in medicine and government and struggles with public health through the COVID-19 pandemic. Walensky, who was appointed by President Joe Biden to serve as CDC Director from 2021–2023, also received the Arts & Sciences Distinguished Alumni Award on April 11.

Dr. William G. Powderly, the Dr. J. William Campbell Professor of Medicine and Larry J. Shapiro Director of the Institute for Public Health, facilitated the conversation with Walensky. Both Powderly and Walensky are renowned infectious disease experts specializing in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Walensky spoke of her passion for changing how people talk about health policies, which led to her work in the public policy sphere. Walensky said in her early career, she was concerned by the way public health officials would privately discuss which groups would unfairly be restricted in their access to HIV and AIDS medication.

Walensky said that one official remarked that members of certain populations disproportionately impacted by HIV and AIDS may not have each been worth spending $15,000 a year on for medication. 

“To me, that was just unacceptable,” Walensky said.

Powderly said that COVID-19, similar to HIV and AIDS, has disproportionately impacted minority populations. Walensky said that it is important to invest more money into community health and increasing public access to medical screenings.  

“We need to not spend tax dollars documenting problems, we need to spend tax dollars now on working to address them,” Walensky said. 

Walensky highlighted her efforts with the CDC to medically train community members and increase access to care in tribal and impoverished lands. She said that much work still needs to be done in addressing healthcare inequities. She attributed many of these issues to the disjointed goals and nonexistent lines of communication between states and different government agencies. 

Walensky said that increased public trust in government was associated with reduced mortality rates during the pandemic. She attributed the lack of public trust in the United States government to poor communication.

“It seemed like emphasis on trusting the government was a big thing, to be able to collect good data,” sophomore Reza Mofidi said. “Trying to bridge that gap and really just building trust between government and civilians is important.” 

Walensky explained how a multi-disciplinary approach can answer difficult questions posed by medicine interacting with other fields such as education. She cited one related encounter she had early in the pandemic on the topic of school closures, which resulted in the cancellation of school sports seasons. She said this posed challenges for families whose personal priorities differed from public health agencies.

“A parent came to me and said, ‘If my child does not wrestle this semester, he will not go to college,’” Walensky said. “Everybody has different risk assessments, and some of them are very appropriate.” 

Walensky said encounters like this were what taught her how one must consider the broad spectrum of viewpoints expressed within communities in order to make decisions as a government official.

“That was a salient example where I saw the whole audience’s eyes open,” sophomore Ani Jaishankar said. “To hear a personal example like that, you wouldn’t expect a government official [to consider that].” 

Powderly said that discrepancies in vaccination rates across the rural-urban divide are even greater than those between minority populations. Walensky said that overlooking this fact has led to certain groups being left behind in discussions about where to dedicate resources. 

“No one talks about that divide,” sophomore Amalia Stulbach said. She said that she was skeptical that possible attempts to change this narrative could succeed, given the “lack of communication within the health system.”

Walensky and Powderly ascribed communication issues to lagging infrastructure in the public health sector, in places including Missouri. Powderly cited the continued usage of antiquated technologies, such as fax machines, as an example. Both said that implementing replacement technologies should be a priority.

Walensky said that recruiting talent from a variety of disciplines, and thus utilizing the aforementioned multi-disciplinary approach, can help WashU’s forthcoming School of Public Health set itself apart from its contemporaries. She said that this would help all students — while many already possess an acute interest in the convergence of the government and public health sectors, it would prove especially advantageous to students who, like herself at one point, didn’t anticipate an eventual career in public service. 

“You may not be in the public health sphere now, but you very much may be incorporated into it later,” Jaishankar said. 

Walensky also said that schools across the country are having trouble bridging the gap between scientific knowledge and its practical uses that would actually help communities.

Walensky, reflecting upon her time as a WashU undergraduate, said she is grateful for the academic freedom she was granted, retrospectively depicting the halls of the Danforth campus as her own “playground of science.” 

Walensky advised WashU students to figure out what sowed their passion for certain issues. She said that for herself, anger over specific policies helps to motivate her to pursue change. To that end, Walensky left students with a basic litmus test for students to ask themselves.

“If it’s 11 o’clock and you’re in your pajamas and you’re annoyed about policy, you’re going to read more about it, and if you’re not [annoyed], you’re going to go to bed,” Walensky said.“[It’s important to ask yourself, what] are the policies that make you riled up enough to make you really want to pursue them in those moments?”

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