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΢ÃÜȦ Associate Professor of Community and Public Health Promotion Soumyadeep Mukherjee is chair of the Ethics Section of the American Public Health Association (APHA), the nation’s largest public health organization.

The Ethics Section strives to create collaborative opportunities for professionals – active or retired – and students from a wide variety of disciplines who are committed to advancing public health ethics in practice, teaching and research.

Mukherjee is also a member of the Rhode Island Public Health Association’s (RIPHA) board of directors and serves as their representative to the APHA’s Governing Council.  

In this Q&A, he discusses the role of ethics in public health settings. 

How has ethics in public health played out nationally and locally over the past few years?

Recently, numerous discussions about public health ethics have dominated national and local headlines. Unfortunately, those discussions have often taken a turn toward politically polarizing debates. Some examples include the mandate to wear face masks during the pandemic versus the right to not wear one; the lockdowns of schools, offices and other institutions versus keeping them open; and vaccine mandates versus the freedom of choice to not be vaccinated nor one’s children. 

Public health practitioners need to acknowledge the challenges in framing recommendations. The pros and cons of recommendations should be ascertained in light of evolving evidence and the context of collective benefits and/or harms. In a way, ethics reminds us of the adage to live and let live. 

What ethical qualities and behaviors do you feel are essential in the public health industry?

The core values and qualities are enshrined in the Code of Ethics, such as being professional and trustworthy; upholding health, safety, human rights and civil liberties; championing social justice and health equity, fostering interdependence and solidarity; and promoting inclusivity and engagement. 

What are some best practices to improve the health of Rhode Island’s population?

Rhode Island is perhaps the only state without sub-state health departments. I feel the Department of Health has an amazing opportunity, as well as a challenge, to oversee state-level and local public health concerns. 

It is also important to continue building on some of the work already going on, for example, Rhode Island’s Health Equity Zone Initiative. It is important to build and nurture partnerships between institutions and communities and get all stakeholders involved. Community health workers who serve as the foundation of the population’s health at the grassroots level should be invited to become stakeholders more often. 

The Rhode Island Public Health Association’s Public Health Summit, now in its second year, aims to create a space for dialog on health equity and improving community health. The association and its academic partners, including ΢ÃÜȦ’s Department of Health and Physical Education, are actively working to remove barriers to participation in this summit for students and appropriate stakeholders by sponsoring their registration to this event. 

What ethics training do students in ΢ÃÜȦ’s community and public health promotion program receive before going into their internships? 

Students in our program receive an overview of ethical principles in their introductory-level community/public health course. This knowledge is reinforced in other courses in the curriculum, some of which are also open to students pursuing other majors. We also provide them with additional opportunities for training and certification, for example, CITI program training. In addition to gaining a hands-on understanding of ethical dilemmas and how to deal with them, certifications serve as crucial professional development opportunities for students interested in future careers in public health practice and/or research. 

For information on a degree in community and public health promotion, see Community and Public Health Promotion B.S. and Minor.