North Carolina State Epidemiologist Takes Office as President of National Public Health Council

Atlanta, GA, July 08, 2016 --(PR.com)-- Chief of the Epidemiology Section of the North Carolina Division of Public Health Dr. Megan Davies took office in June as the president of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE).

Dr. Davies has worked as an epidemiologist for over 18 years, first with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and then with the North Carolina Division of Public Health. During her tenure with CDC, Dr. Davies was involved in developing new surveillance systems and enhancing epidemiologic capacity in states. She also served on CDC response teams, including to the anthrax attacks of 2001 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. As chief of the Epidemiology Section with the North Carolina Division of Health, Megan oversees surveillance, outbreak response, and programmatic activities in communicable diseases, occupational and environmental health, and public health preparedness. She has served as a CSTE Executive Board member for the past three years, steering committee activities, leading organizational decisions, communicating with national partners and federal leaders, and lending expertise on public health topics.

Dr. Davies takes office at a time of unprecedented growth and activity for CSTE. The organization, founded in 1956, represents over 1,700 applied public health epidemiologists in all states and territories and provides technical advice and assistance to partner organizations, such as CDC.

Epidemiology, the surveillance and control of diseases, is often called the cornerstone of public health. In times of infectious outbreaks, epidemiologists are the “disease detectives” responsible for safeguarding the public’s health.

As a member organization, CSTE has been an instrumental player in addressing emerging diseases: informing the public and lawmakers of state, local and territorial priorities for Zika Virus Disease; helping create the 2014-2016 Ebola response and recovery strategy; and supporting measles contact tracing related to 2015 outbreaks. CSTE members are further known for authoring and implementing position statements that determine nationally notifiable diseases and conditions and inform national policy. CSTE administers four fellowships, pairing public health professionals with health departments across the United States.

Dr. Davies assumed presidency on June 24, 2016, following the CSTE Annual Conference, the largest annual event in applied epidemiology in the United States. Dr. Davies’ presidential priorities include surveillance modernization and workforce development initiatives.