A Message from the Editor In this issue of Public Health Reports (PHR), we welcome the new Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy. After his nomination by President Obama, Dr. Murthy was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on December 15, 2014, as the 19th Surgeon General of the United States. As Surgeon General, he oversees the operations of the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, with the rank of vice admiral, and becomes chair of the National Prevention Council. Dr. Murthy succeeds Dr. Regina M. Benjamin, who stepped down as Surgeon General in July 2013. Until Dr. Murthy’s confirmation, Dr. Boris D. Lushniak served as the Acting Surgeon General. In future issues of PHR, our Surgeon General’s Perspectives column will feature writings by Dr. Murthy. For this issue, we are printing remarks made before a Congressional committee by Acting Surgeon General Lushniak on November 18, 2014, on the contributions of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, the Office of the Surgeon General, and the Commissioned Corps to help stop the spread of Ebola virus disease. (Dr. Lushniak’s remarks were published on December 11, 2014, at www.publichealthreports.org.) Dr. Murthy brings broad experience to the position of Surgeon General. His parents immigrated to the United States from India, and he spent many hours in his father’s medical clinic in Miami, Florida.1 He holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and doctor of medicine and master of business administration degrees from Yale University. He completed a residency in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, where he later joined the faculty as a practicing physician and instructor. He has experience as a scientific researcher, healthcare entrepreneur, and innovator. In 1995, Dr. Murthy cofounded VISIONS, an HIV/AIDS education program in India and the United States. He also cofounded the Swasthya project, a community health partnership in rural India, and served as the president of Doctors for America, a nonprofit physician organization working with patients and policy-makers to build a high-quality, affordable health system. In addition, he cofounded TrialNetworks, a successful software technology company to improve research collaboration and enhance the efficiency of clinical trials worldwide.

Dr. Murthy has said that, as Surgeon General, he will focus his efforts on the American epidemics of obesity and tobacco-related disease, reducing stigma associated with mental illness, improving vaccination rates, and working “to make prevention and health promotion the backbone of our communities.”1 He has emphasized the importance of cross-sector partnerships in communities to help solve public health problems. His highest priority will be to communicate the best available scientific information to the American people on ways to improve personal and population health. We at PHR look forward to working with Dr. Murthy to bring his perspectives to our readers. As always, this issue of PHR features articles on an assortment of public health topics. We feature a special article on the intersection of law, medicine, and public health preparedness, as well as a commentary on an approach to health communications during domestic Ebola responses. To bring articles on hot-topic issues to you more quickly, all three Ebola-related articles were posted on our website ahead of print. For our Executive Perspective series, where we present the views of leaders from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) operating divisions, we feature an article by the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health–Women’s Health on progress in women’s health, and a companion commentary from the HHS Office on Women’s Health. Other articles in the issue run the gamut from language barriers to preventive care, aspects of testosterone therapy, and occupational information in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, to issues in using immunization registries and use of big data. A student column from the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health reviews the use of academic detailing to improve childhood influenza vaccination rates. As always, if you have ideas or suggestions for PHR, please write to me at [email protected]. Frederic E. Shaw, MD, JD Acting Editor REFERENCE  1. Office of the Surgeon General (US). Biography of the Surgeon General, Vice Admiral (VADM) Vivek H. Murthy, M.D., M.B.A [cited 2015 Jan 16]. Available from: URL: http://www.surgeongeneral .gov/about/biographies/biosg.html

Public Health Reports  /  March–April 2015 / Volume 130

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