David Vlahov (born August 31, 1952) is an American epidemiologist and professor emeritus at the UCSF School of Nursing, of which he previously served as dean from April 2011 to August 2016. He is also the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

of the ''

Journal of Urban Health The ''Journal of Urban Health'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed public health journal covering epidemiology and public health in urban areas. It was established in 1851 as the ''Transactions of the New York Academy of Medicine'', and was renamed the ' ...

'', and has been a member of the

National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Eng ...

since 2011. He is known for researching issues related to social determinants of health, such as the effectiveness of needle exchange programs. With

Sandro Galea Sandro Galea (born 1971) is a physician, epidemiologist, and author. He is the Robert A. Knox professor and dean at the Boston University School of Public Health. He is the former Chair of Epidemiology at the Columbia University Mailman School of ...

, he has also researched psychological responses to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

among residents of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

Biography

Vlahov was born and raised in

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He is the son of William Vlahov, a

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

-born dentist, and Helga Wolfsohn, a Jewish woman who grew up in

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Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and fled the country for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Kristallnacht () or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (german: Novemberpogrome, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) paramilitary and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation fro ...

. He received his B.A. from

Earlham College Earlham College is a private liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. The college was established in 1847 by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and has a strong focus on Quaker values such as integrity, a commitment to peace and social ...

in 1974, his B.S.N. from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

in 1977, his M.S. from the University of Maryland in 1980, and his Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and Hygiene in 1988. Soon after graduating from the University of Maryland, he worked as a nurse in a coronary unit at

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

's Sinai Hospital, and as a clinician in a prison hospital. He later became Director of the Center for Urban Epidemiologic Studies at the

New York Academy of Medicine The New York Academy of Medicine (the Academy) is a health policy and advocacy organization founded in 1847 by a group of leading New York metropolitan area physicians as a voice for the medical profession in medical practice and public health ...

, where he helped build the center's work on subjects such as

HIV prevention HIV prevention refers to practices that aim to prevent the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV prevention practices may be undertaken by individuals to protect their own health and the health of those in their community, or may ...

and

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental hea ...

. While working at the New York Academy of Medicine, he also conducted a study of psychological reactions to the

. Before joining UCSF in 2011, he also served as a professor of clinical epidemiology at the Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health, and the senior vice president for research at the New York Academy of Medicine.

Personal life

Vlahov is married to Robyn Gershon, with whom he has two adult children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vlahov, David Living people American nurses American epidemiologists 1952 births University of California, San Francisco faculty Academic journal editors Members of the National Academy of Medicine Academics from Washington, D.C. Earlham College alumni University of Maryland, College Park alumni Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health alumni Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health faculty