Geoffrey Swain

Adjunct Associate Professor

Education

MPH, Health Services Administration, Medical College of Wisconsin
MD, Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin
BS, Medical Science, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Research Interests and Expertise

I have over 16 years of broad-based public health leadership and practice experience in the state's largest local health department. I have served in leadership roles in the development of Wisconsin's 2010 and 2020 health plans, in the National Association of County and City Health Officials (related to immunization practices and to health equity), in the CDC's Region V effort to reduce chlamydia and gonorrhea rates, and in the Wisconsin Public Health Association (as a board member and a Vice-President).

My professional interests are particularly focused around:

• the socioeconomic determinants of health,
• health disparities,
• professional public health practice (especally communicable diseases, immunization programs, emergency preparedness, and maternal-child health), and
• upstream, policy-level interventions to reduce health inequities and improve population health outcomes.

My past research has often focused on communicable diseases (notably sexually transmitted diseases and immunization practices), especially on evaluation of interventions that could potentially be immediately and practically applied in the clinic setting to improve patient outcomes.

I have also published several articles documenting successful public health leadership practices, including development of partnerships between local health departments and academic institutions, a pilot study of implementing 360-degree feedback at the Milwaukee Health Department, and articles on ethics in public health related to immunization mandates and to emergency preparedness.

Going forward, I will continue to emphasize public health leadership practices and partnerships between academe and local health departments, while devoting more research attention to the root causes of health inequities and multi-level collaborative interventions related to the socioeconomic determinants of health.

Personal Teaching Statement

I have been involved in multi-level and interdisciplinary teaching for nearly 20 years, including: medical students and residents; undergraduate students in nursing; pre-med, pharmacy, clinical laboratory science; graduate level nurse practitioner students; masters in public health students; post-masters public health Fellows; and practicing physicians and public health professionals.

My teaching experience ranges from large-audience lectures, to small-group seminars and problem-based learning, to preceptorships and mentorships. While I also have content expertise and teaching experience in other focused areas of public health practice (noted above), I am particularly interested in teaching fundamental principles of public health practice at the Masters level, community assessment and public health strategic planning, and theory and practice related to the social and economic determinants of health.

Administrative and Faculty Appointments:

Associate Professor of Family Medicine and Population Health Sciences	University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine & Public Health	Madison, WI
Center Scientist	Center for Urban Population Health	Milwaukee, WI
Medical Director & Chief Medical Officer	City of Milwaukee Health Department	Milwaukee, WI
Interim Director	Wisconsin Center for Health Equity	Milwaukee, WI
Adjunct Associate Professor	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Public Health	Milwaukee, WI

Representative Publications

Zusevics K, Gilmore GD, Jecklin RA, Swain GR. (2009). Online education: the needs, interests, and capacities on Wisconsin public health professionals. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 5(3), 531-545.

Swain GR, Kowalewski S, Schubot D. (1998). Reducing congenital syphilis incidence in Milwaukee: a public/private partnership. American Journal of Public Health, 88(7), 1101-1102.Representative Funded Projects

Swain GR, McDonald RA, Pfister JR, Gradus MS, Sedmak GV, Singh A. (2004). Decision analysis: point-of-care chlamydia testing vs. laboratory-based methods. Clinical Medicine & Research, 2(1), 29-35.

Swain GR, Schubot DB, Thomas V, Baker BK, Foldy SL, Greaves WW, Monteagudo M. (2004). Three hundred sixty degree feedback: program implementation in a local health department. Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 10(3), 266-71.

Swain GR, Bennett N, Etkind P, Ransom J. (2006). Local health department and academic partnerships: Education beyond the ivy walls. Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 106(7), 33-36.

Vila PM, Swain GR, Baumgardner DJ, Halsmer SE, Remington PL, Cisler RA. (2007). Health disparities in Milwaukee by socioeconomic status. Wisconsin Medical Journal, 12(1), 29-35.

Representative Funded Projects

Principal Investigator/Project Director, "Increasing adolescent immunization rates through school-based clinics," Robert Wood Johnson Foundation "Public Health Practice: Evaluating the Impact of Quality Improvement," 6/2009-5/2011, $159,999

Principal Investigator/Academic Partner, "The Milwaukee Nurse-Family Partnership Program," The Wisconsin Partnership Fund for a Healthy Future, UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health, 5/2007-4/2010, $449,000

Principal Investigator, "Bridging the Gap in Childhood Immunization Rates in Milwaukee," US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: National Immunization Program, 9/2005-8/2009, $900,000

Co-Investigator (with Lance Weinhardt, PhD), "Individually Tailored Computerized HIV Intervention," National Institute of Health/National Institute of Mental Health, 4/2004-3/2009

Site Investigator (with Cheryl Maurana, PhD), "Development of a Service-learning Community Health Curriculum for Family Medicine Residents, Health Resources and Services Administration, 7/2000-6/2003