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Joel L. Nitzkin, MD, MPH, DPA, FACPM
CEO, Principal Consultant, and sole member of JLN, MD Associates, L.L.C.
Primary Current Active Skill Sets:
 | A preventive medicine physician’s ability to address human biology, illness and the efficacy of preventive and therapeutic interventions. |
| An epidemiologist’s ability to address health issues on a group or population level. |
| In-depth training and experience in public administration and organizational dynamics. |
Current Active Expertise as demonstrated by projects, presentations and
publications:
disease and demand management, quality assurance, integration of healthcare
programming, public health administration, epidemiologic investigation,
preventive medicine, bioterrorism, correctional (jail and prison) health,
food-borne illness, other infectious diseases, chronic diseases, mental health,
emergency/disaster preparedness and response, long term care, and telemedicine.
Biographical Sketch
I was attracted to public health, while still in medical school, when I experienced the power of a simple community intervention to eliminate a major health problem. After hospital internship, I spent two years as a communicable disease control officer for the Centers for Disease Control, then secured a Master’s Degree in Public Health. In the early 1970’s, I broadened my focus to the full range of preventive services provided by a local health department, secured a Masters Degree and Doctorate in Public Administration, and Board Certification in Preventive Medicine as my medical specialty. For the next 13 years, I served as Director of an urban health department (Rochester, NY). While local health director, I was an active member of boards of directors in health insurance, hospital, long term care and mental health entities. In 1989, I came to Louisiana as State Health Officer and Director of the Louisiana Office of Public Health. This was my second politically appointed job, and the second time I had been hired to “fix” a “broken” public health agency. Over the next 27 months, until the inauguration of the next state administration, I energetically and successfully did the job I was hired to do. At that point, having fallen in love with New Orleans, I decided to stay, and started my career as a consultant. Since then, I have taken on a number of short-term full time assignments dealing with correctional health, leprosy, healthcare quality, telemedicine, home care and community outreach. In 1997, I incorporated as JLN, MD Associates, LLC –and have served in that capacity ever since.
I have served as President of two national public health organizations (The National Association of County and City Health Officials ((NACCHO)) 1988-89 and the American Association of Public Health Physicians ((AAPHP)) 1996-1998) and multiple national advisory committees and commissions since the mid 1980s.
Since the fall of 2006, on behalf of AAPHP, I have been serving as Principal Investigator and Project Manager for the Preventive Services ToolKit Project -- to develop and implement a seminar/workshop curriculum to teach advocacy, policy and management skills to healthcare and public health staff to enhance the provision of preventive services in both clinical and community settings. This curriculum is largely based on elements from my public administration training which I have adapted to healthcare and public health settings, and used to achieve dramatic benefits in community health outcomes and (as shown in the experience section of this resume) dramatic benefits to my clients and employers.
On a personal basis, I am married, have two grown children, and enjoy jazz, scuba diving, travel, and genealogy. From 2004 through 2007, I also served as Captain of a Mardi Gras krewe.
Experience
JLN, MD
Associates, L.L.C.
New Orleans,
LA
1992-1994, and 1997 to Present
Health Policy Consultant
|
Principal Investigator on federally funded (CDC) project to develop and present seminar/workshops for clinicians and healthcare administrators on how best to expand and create new preventive services in healthcare settings and how best to partner with health departments and community groups to encourage and enable community-based preventive services. This project is known as the Preventive Services Toolkit (PSTK) Project. This is a three-year project initiated September, 2005. For further information, go to www.aaphp.org and click on "Preventive Services Toolkit". |
|
Principal Investigator on locally funded project to develop Needs Assessment and Strategic Plan for the New Orleans Health Department. 2003 |
|
Principal Investigator on federally funded (SAMHSA) project to review the literature on preventive mental health services that should be implemented in healthcare settings. The final report includes over 500 bibliographic references and the evidence base, description of interventions and guidelines for planning and evaluation of 15 clinical preventive behavioral health services, covering all age groups. 2002 to 2004. This report was published as a 180 page “clinical update” monograph. It is accessible on the Internet and is now in its second printing. |
|
Consultant to Ochsner Health Plan, New Orleans – disease management and quality assurance in preparation for NCQA site visit. All materials generated by JLN secured “full” acceptance by the NCQA review team. 2001. |
| Principal Investigator on four federally funded projects, on behalf of Engineering Management & Economics, Inc.: Interactive Guide to Community Preventive Services, Centers for Disease Control, September 2000; Geographic Information System Enhancement of Community Planning for Cardiovascular Diseases, Centers for Disease Control, June 1999; Listen to Your Heart Project (computer and web-based educational materials and administrative decision-support simulator to get patients experiencing symptoms suggestive of a heart attack into definitive medical care more rapidly) National Library of Medicine/NIH, November 1998; Automated Simulation Analysis Platform for Health Care Project (computer simulation program to project costs and benefits of implementation of preventive programming for adult onset diabetics) Centers for Disease Control, September 1997. |
| Policy consultant to Merck & Co. relative to development of innovative risk assessment based wellness programming for selected municipal and corporate clients, 2000. |
| Policy advisor for development of integrated set of management information systems for the El Paso County Department of Health, Colorado Springs, CO, 2000. |
| Medical Director, LifeStyle Directions, Inc., Monaca, PA, 1996 to 2000 – provision of medical, epidemiological and policy guidance to LDI relative to their family of health risk assessment questionnaires, report forms and program components. |
| Telemedicine – initiation of program, medical and project direction, development and implementation of research protocols. |
| Medicare quality assurance - helped develop Health Care Quality Improvement Initiative for Louisiana Health Care Review (Louisiana’s Peer Review Organization). |
| Hansen’s Disease Center, Carville, LA - program evaluation, strategic planning and successful advocacy for addition of $1.4 million for 1993 budget and $3 million for 1994 budget, |
| Correctional Health Liaison- development of new medical and mental health policies and procedures within the Louisiana State prison system, and improved communications with the Charity Hospital system |
Expert Witness
I have served as a substantive or expert witness for most of my career, with many depositions and a handful of court appearances. Much, but not all of this, was in the context of my public health work, or voluntary activities in the field of tobacco control. From January 1 of 2000 through September of 2007, I served as expert witness in 49 cases or related sets of cases. Twenty of these related to healthcare quality, fourteen to food poisoning, thirteen to correctional health, and two to alleged community acquired infections. I served the plaintiff in 30 of these cases, defense in the other 19. As best I can determine, in 26 of these cases, my expert opinion determined the outcome of the case. During this period, in addition to record review and relate research, I provided seven depositions and three court appearances.
As an expert witness, whether for the plaintiff or defense, I see my primary role as elimination of ambiguity as to culpability. I see as a “victory” that the vast majority of cases in which my opinion determined the outcome were either dropped or settled without having to go to deposition or court appearance.
Louisiana State University School of Medicine
New Orleans,
LA
1994-1997
Associate Professor
| Principal Investigator, Louisiana TELEMEDicine Research Project. This involved initial development of LSU telemedicine program, development of a management information system for such programming and working with stakeholders to secure utilization and success of programming. 1993-1996 |
| Medical Director, University Home Care 1994-1997 |
| Consultant to Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans (Charity and University hospitals) on disease and demand management, continuity of care, and compliance with JCAHCO and HCFA guidelines 1995-1997 |
| Medical Director and Management Consultant to, Daughters of Charity Neighborhood Health Partnership (DCNHP) 1995-1996 |
Louisiana Office of Public Health
New Orleans, LA
1989-1992
State Health Director:
| Medical Director, Health Officer (official responsible for enforcement of State Sanitary Code), and Chief Executive Officer of state agency with headquarters, nine regional offices, 62 local health departments and three laboratories. |
| OPH grew from 1,800 to 2,100 staff positions, and from $136 million to $172 million annual budget during my 27 month tenure in this position. Of the $36 million in new annual revenues, $25 million was in recurring federal funding, most of which has continued to this day. |
| Six million dollars (also annual and recurring) was from a single act of the state legislature to dramatically upgrade the safe drinking water program. |
Monroe County Health Department
Rochester,
NY
1976-1989
County Health Director:
| Medical Director, Health Officer and Chief Executive Officer of local government agency with 450 staff and a $12 million budget. |
| Developed and implemented new data systems. |
| Quadrupled home health agency revenues in first three years. |
| Played major role in Emergency and Disaster Planning relative to Ginna Nuclear Plant, bomb threats and possible bioterrorist attacks. |
| Played major leadership roles on the Boards of Directors of health insurance, hospital, long term care and mental health entities. |
| Served as President of one local, one state, and one national organization. |
| Worked closely with the Monroe County Jail and the Jail Health Project of the American Medical Association in the initial development of the health standards that later became the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) standards for accreditation of prison and jail health programs. |
Dade County Health Department
Miami,
FL
1970-1976
Chief, Office of Consumer Protection:
| Directed communicable and chronic disease control programs, immunization, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted disease clinics, vital records and nursing home inspection. |
| Supervised a public health residency program and federally-assigned physician Epidemic Intelligence Service officers. |
| Played lead role in designing and managing health-related anti-terrorism programming for 1972 Democratic and Republican National Conventions in Miami Beach. |
| My most dramatic accomplishments were investigation and control of a large outbreak of typhoid fever in a migrant labor camp and development of an innovative childhood immunization program that eliminated local transmission of diseases preventable by routine childhood immunization for the final four and a half years of my six year tenure in Miami. |
US Public Health Service
Frankfort,
KY
1967-1969
Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer (Assigned from the Centers for Disease Control to Kentucky Department of Health, Frankfort, KY):
|
Trained by CDC in epidemiology, biostatistics, surveillance, communicable disease control, bioterrorism and in family planning program design |
|
Communicable disease investigation and control – this included investigation and control of multiple outbreaks, including a large epidemic of infectious hepatitis, rebuilding state surveillance systems, and rewriting much of the state sanitary code |
|
Sixty day assignment to Northern Nigeria to assist and help assess the regional smallpox eradication program |
Post Sophomore
Fellowship
Jerusalem and Kiryat
Shmoneh,
Israel
1963-1964
Post Sophomore Fellow:
This experience, between my sophomore and junior years of medical school, diverted my career from clinical medicine to public health. I started as a hematology research fellow studying an “epidemic” of megaloblastic anemia of pregnancy in a small town in northern Israel. With assistance and mentoring from Professor Sidney Kark (Social Medicine), I determined the behavioral determinants of this illness and recommended that lunch served at language school for these Moroccan immigrants. This simple, but previously not considered, intervention eliminated the anemia.
Education
Public Health Leadership Institute, Berkeley, CA,
Participating Scholar, 1991-1992
Nova University, Fort Lauderdale, FL, Doctor of Public
Administration, 1977-1978
Nova University, Fort Lauderdale, FL, Master of Public
Administration, 1975-1977
University of California, Berkeley, CA, Master of Public
Health, 1969-1970
Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas, TX, Internship, 1966-1967
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, School of Medicine,
Medical Doctor, 1961-1966
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, School of Liberal
Arts, 1958-1961
Current Certification and Licensure
American Board of Preventive Medicine, since 1974
Fellow, American College of Preventive Medicine, since 1974
Medical Licensure: Louisiana since 1989
Current Professional Affiliations
American Association of Public
Health Physicians
American College of Preventive Medicine
American Medical
Association
American Public Health
Association
American Society for Public Administration
Publications and Presentations
Over 70 publications. One to five presentations at major national meetings almost every year since the mid-1980’s.
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