Recorded presentation

Noreen M. Clark, PhD, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, 109 S. Observatory Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, 734-763-5454, nmclark@umich.edu

Great public health leaders not only shape their own time, their legacy continues to shape times to come. Mayhew Derryberry was one of a small group of people working almost four decades ago who saw that the social and behavioral sciences comprise the theoretical foundation for health education practice. He was also one of the first to articulate the potential impact of health education. He saw that enriching practice with theory, and conducting evaluative research that would separate effective from ineffective approaches would enable health education to assume a powerful place in public health and health care delivery. He provided compelling examples to show that the real health educators and managers of health are families. He made the case that, therefore, a primary function of health educators and other health professionals is to position and enable individuals to control their own circumstances. This behavioral approach was not a popular idea in an era when the professional educative role stopped at providing information and facts. Further, to suggest that health professionals other than health educators had an educative role was a brave proposition in his time. Even now it is hard for some to accept his notion: a central obligation of the health educator is to help other professionals be optimal educators. He articulated in compelling ways the need for health care providers to communicate sensitively and effectively with patients – seeing communication between the two as fundamental to maintaining or acquiring good health.

Learning Objectives: