Our 50th Anniversary
Applications are open July 1 – August 31, 2023. Physicians, veterinarians, nurses, and other health professionals who are interested in applying should visit the Application Information page.
The Preventive Medicine Residency/Fellowship (PMR/F) celebrates its 50th anniversary in July 2022! PMR/F launched initially as a residency-only program in 1972 and was expanded to offer a fellowship option in 1983. In 50 years, PMR/F has hosted over 445 fellows and residents who served numerous public health causes under the leadership of 12 program directors.
To commemorate PMR/F’s 50th year, on this page we’re highlighting a mix of the experiences, contributions, mentors/mentees, and leadership that make PMR/F a valuable training program and conduit to public health careers.
Featured Testimonial
Class of 2016
Hear from Dr. Brenna Van Frank as she recounts her PMR/F fellowship experience and how it positioned her for other public health opportunities.
PMR/F graduates and former directors: if you’d like to be featured, please submit your own testimonial by clicking the link below to send an email with your current job title & credentials, PMR/F class year, testimonial, and a photo.
Featured Tribute
PMR/F would like to recognize the late Dr. Wiesner, a public health giant, who was instrumental in providing career-changing supervision and mentorship to the largest number of residents/fellows over the longest period of time. From 1989 to 2004, Dr. Wiesner mentored the following residents and fellows:
Miles Braun, Matthew McKenna, Sue Ann Brenner, Fernando Guerena, Elizabeth Ortiz-Rios, Yvette Davis, Iain Hardy, Gail Stennies, Pamela Logan, Cindy Weinbaum, Eileen Dunne, Idalia Gonzalez, Elise Beltrami, Susan Cookson, Patrick Zuber.
A Special Thanks to PMR/F Program Directors
The significant contributions from current and past PMR/F program directors have shaped the success of our program today. In appreciation for their efforts, we’d like to recognize all program directors who have served in this role in PMR/F’s 50 years. The recognitions that follow also include messages that current and past PMR/F program directors shared about their experiences.
Director from 1971 — 1974
Director from 1974 — 1976
Director from 1976 — 1979
Director from 1979 — 1984
I am honored and delighted to add my greetings and congratulations on the 50th anniversary of CDC’s Preventive Medicine Residency/Fellowship. It was my privilege to direct the program, assisted by Dr. Jeffrey Koplan, in some of its earliest years. Thanks to the cooperation and dedication of many CDC staff and others, most especially the enthusiastic and talented residents themselves, the program became a rich and highly valued addition to CDC’s already renown offerings as a destination for anyone interested in public health practice. I was particularly pleased to help active and recent Epidemic Intelligence Service officers gain experience and awareness of some academic aspects of epidemiology and related subjects, and of some non-medical dimensions of public health. Kudos to all those who continued strengthening the program and those who have benefitted from it over the years.
Director from 1984 — 1988
From 1979 to 1984, I served as the Assistant or Deputy Director of CDC’s Preventive Medicine Residency program under Director Donald Hopkins, before the program added a Fellowship option. From 1984 to 1988 I served as Director of the Preventive Medicine Residency.
Director from 1988 — 1992
I consider my tenure as PMR/F director to be one of the most rewarding experience of my career. It was inspiring to work with such bright young health professionals with the potential to become the next generation of public health leaders. It always made me proud and happy to see so many of them assume leadership positions and to excel.
Director from 1993 — 1998
PMR/F has played an outsized role in the world of professional development and training inside and outside CDC. For many years, the CDC PMR/F was the largest residency in the country with about 16-30 MD & DVM residents/fellows engaged over 2 years overlapping with the 2nd year of EIS.
Acting Director from 1998 — 1999
Director from 1999 — 2002
Director from 2002 — 2011
Following the valuable and memorable CDC PMR/F year I spent at DeKalb County Board of Health, I was happy to support the program and other residents and fellows. I assumed a CDC staff position after graduation but also served as a PMR/F Assistant Director before becoming Director in 2002. During my tenure I welcomed the opportunity to work with and learn from my predecessors, Drs. Art Liang and Jim Lando, the many advisory and graduate medical education committee members internal and external to CDC, supervisors, faculty, staff in the PMR/F and other training programs, and the residents and fellows.
Deputy Director from 2002 — 2003
Deputy Director from 2003 — 2009
Deputy Director from 2009-2011
Director from 2011 — 2015
It is with great respect and gratitude to those CDC PMR/F leaders who preceded me that I offer these brief comments. I also owe a great deal to my prior mentors and colleagues, for having started my CDC career with Epidemic Intelligence Service (2003-2005) followed by PMR/F training (2005-2006), both of which provided me competencies that I use every single day.
Director from 2015 — Current
While my entryway into CDC was through Epidemic Intelligence Service, it is the skills I developed in PMR/F that I continue to use every day to manage and lead programs. The unique combination of mostly hands-on experiences with leaders from intentionally different agencies (federal vs. state/local) along with focused didactics is what makes PMR/F an effective training program and leader in the field.