“Who’s in CHARGE?” spotlights a member of the AAMC Collaborative for Health equity: Act, Research, Generate Evidence (CHARGE), a forum for investigators, clinicians, and community partners who design and implement research and policies that eliminate health and health care inequities. May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and we’re featuring Mallory Yung, Associate Director for the Health Equity Alliance at the Health Management Academy, and AAMC CHARGE virtual community ambassador. Connect with Mallory in the AAMC virtual community and on LinkedIn.
What sparked your interest in health equity work?
With my academic background in sociology and public health, I’ve always had an interest in better understanding how structural bias and systemic inequalities impact population health. My specific interest in health equity was sparked by some of my firsthand experiences as a first-generation child of immigrants, observing how difficult it was for non-English-speaking relatives to get access to health care.
Why is now the right time for all of us to work together on health equity?
The confluence of policy momentum and public awareness around health equity has given us a window of opportunity to push forward both structural and surface-level changes that chip away at health inequities from both ends.
What health equity project are you most proud of or excited about?
In a prior role, I helped spearhead a citywide evaluation of Nashville, Tennessee’s COVID-19 response with NashvilleHealth, a nonprofit organization that supports cross-sector collaboration to improve Nashville’s population health outcomes. The evaluation had a specific focus on understanding where certain policy decisions inadvertently exacerbated existing disparities. It’s been so humbling to see NashvilleHealth action on our report recommendations, through their pandemic crisis preparedness initiative — and I’m so excited to see the Metro Public Health Department and other Nashville health care stakeholders put in place structural changes to ensure equitable outcomes for future public health emergencies.
Do you have an immediate research collaboration need?
I'd love to understand how folks from academic health centers or other health care delivery organizations are showing the value of health equity from a business-case perspective. With the unfortunate reality that health care is a business in the United States, this is an area where I’d love to see if folks have identified innovative workarounds that could be applied across other organizations as well.
What’s the first concert you ever went to?
Mariah Carey, when I was 12!
You can meet other health equity champions like Mallory in the AAMC CHARGE virtual community. Interested in nominating yourself or a colleague for a future “Who’s in CHARGE?” member spotlight?