In honor of Black History Month, we recognize our Black alumni with a Q&A session to celebrate their impact in the field of public health and gain insight to how we can all improve the health of our communities.
Meet Ashlee Wisdom, MPH '18!
What is your current job, and what do you want to do in the future?
I’m the co-founder and CEO of a digital health startup, Health In Her HUE, which is focused on creating a seamless experience for Black women and women of color who are looking for culturally competent and personalized healthcare and health information. In the future, I would love to support, advise and invest in founders of color who are building solutions designed to challenge the status quo in healthcare and society.
However you want to define HUE -- patient advocacy, health tech, community health -- has its meaning evolved over time? If so, how?
Lately I’ve been more keen on finding ways to involve the community in solution development and design, as opposed to assuming that, because I’ve identified a problem or gap, I have all the answers to very complex and nuanced issues. When I came up with the name Health In Her HUE, I wanted the word HUE to represent something more than color, so I made up an acronym: Health In Her Heard and Understood Experiences. To stay true to the core mission of providing women of color access to care, content and community that centers their unique experiences, I have to keep them involved in our development process. I want to ensure that we are building a product and service that hears and understands the unique experiences of women who have been overlooked or dismissed by the traditional healthcare system.
Why did you pursue a career in public health? What motivates you to continue working in this challenging COVID-era?
I pursued a career in public health the moment I realized that I could effect change in healthcare without being a clinician. I wanted a career that allowed me to take into account the myriad factors that impact a person’s healthcare outcomes, and public health certainly makes room for that. I’m very passionate about social justice and healthcare, and I saw public health as the perfect field to pursue justice and equity in an area that impacts so many other factors of our life: health.
Black History Month is a time to reflect on and celebrate Black history as we look toward the future of the Black community. What does it mean to you?
BHM is a time for me to reflect on all of the people who’ve contributed to making America, and this world, a better place. It’s a time for me to celebrate my heritage and to be intentional about ways I want to pick up the proverbial baton. I am proud of my Blackness all year, but BHM is special because I get to be extra loud and intentional about my pride and celebration of Blackness and Black excellence, and how dynamic and nuanced it is.
How do you use your public health skills to serve your local community?
I aim to tear down racist systems and rebuild new, equitable ways to approach health. I aim to use my public health skills to make health information more culturally relevant to members of my community, and to include their perspective and expertise in the way I approach the work I do.
What are some practical actions other people can take to improve the health of their community?
Some practical steps include cultivating a space (whether it be in person or virtual) for your community to share experiences and concerns. You can bring trusted experts into the community to share expertise in a way that will be understood and received by everyone. Degrees alone don’t make someone an expert in the community; we also need academic experts and community members /experts to communicate and exchange information.
What is your best piece of career advice for young professionals who want to make an impact in public health?
Know the impact you want to make, and make career decisions that will build up the level of expertise and relationships that enable you to reach that goal. Remember that success is about you, and impact is about others. So know that you’ll have to make a series of sacrifices to have impact and not just success. Figure out what you want most, and map out your career that way, but allow space for the inevitable divergence.