Defending and Improving the Health Science Knowledge System with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Dr. Alonzo Plough

Defending and Improving Health Sciences and Public Health Data

Health science research has significantly improved lives in the last 100 years. Objective data, however, reveals that progress improving the nation’s health is uneven: structural changes like poverty and racism remain significant barriers to wellbeing for too many people in our society.

Recent actions by the federal government to remove public data threaten progress towards health improvement for all. With science under attack, it's more important than ever to defend it and strengthen health research. What are the best ways that academic institutions and research fields can stand up for science and as we improve our methods and practices to address health inequality?

Learn about the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF) strategic plan to advance health equity, with a special focus on the importance of representative data and actionable policy. Hear recommendations on what institutions can do at this critical time when data is being eliminated, as mis/disinformation fills the void. Preserving and strengthening vital health information is important not just for researchers and practitioners, but all who believe that having honest, unbiased and available data is the public’s right and contributes to the nation’s wellbeing.

Alonzo Plough, Ph.D MPH, will draw on his own life experiences confronting inequity and in communities, as well as his distinguished academic and public health practice career. He has published numerous academic articles, seven books and extensive commentaries in the media. He is Chief Science Officer and Vice President of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.