Jo Ivey Elizabeth Boufford

Jo Ivey Boufford

Jo Ivey Elizabeth Boufford

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Director of the Doctor of Public Health Program

Clinical Professor of Global and Environmental Health

Professional overview

Jo Ivey Boufford, M.D., is Clinical Professor of Global Health at the New York University School of Global Public Health and Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at New York University  School of Medicine. She is President Emeritus of The New York Academy of Medicine and Immediate Past President of the International Society for Urban Health (2017-9). She served as Dean of the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University from June 1997 to November 2002. Prior to that, she served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from November 1993 to January 1997, and as Acting Assistant Secretary from January 1997 to May 1997. While at HHS, she was the U.S. representative on the Executive Board of the World Health Organization (WHO) from 1994–1997. She served in a variety of senior positions in and as President of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), the largest municipal system in the United States, from December 1985 until October 1989. In NYC, she currently serves on the Board of the United Hospital Fund, is Vice Chair of the NYS Public Health and Health Planning Council (PHHPC) and Chair of its Public Health Committee. Nationally, she is on the Boards of the National Hispanic Health Foundation and the Health Effects Institute. She was elected to membership in the US National Academy of Medicine (formerly IOM) in 1992, served on its Board on Global Health, and served two four year terms as its Foreign Secretary from 2003 to 2011, She was elected to membership of the National Academy of Public Administration in 2015. She is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine. Dr. Boufford attended Wellesley College for two years and received her BA (Psychology) magna cum laude from the University of Michigan, and her MD, with distinction, from the University of Michigan Medical School. She is Board Certified in pediatrics.

Education

BA, Psychology (Magna Cum Laude), University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
MD, Medicine (with distinction), University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI

Honors and awards

Honorary Doctorate of Science, Toledo University, Toledo, OH (2012)
Honorary Doctorate of Science, Pace University, New York, NY (2011)
Top 100 Most Influential Women, Crain's New York Business (2007)
Honorary Doctorate of Science, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY (2007)
Honorary Doctorate of Science, State University of New York, Brooklyn, NY (1992)
Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship, Institute of Medicine in Washington, DC (1980)

Areas of research and study

Aging and the Life Course
Gates Foundation
Health Disparities
Health Promotion
International Health
New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation
Prevention Interventions
Public Administration
Public Health Management
Public Health Policy
Public Health Systems
US Department of Health and Human Services
World Health Organization

Publications

Publications

A new whole-of-city strategy for addressing cardiovascular population health

Boufford, J. I. E., Aerts, A., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Cities and Health
Abstract
Abstract
People in low- and middle-income countries experience heart disease at alarming rates. As urbanization accelerates, cities can drive innovative partnerships to improve prevention and management of heart disease, bringing government, business and civil society together. Through Better Hearts Better Cities, we pioneered a people-centered and multisector initiative, guided and owned by local city authorities, to address cardiovascular disease and its underlying causes within the context of rapid urbanization, reaching millions of people. Cities across the world can apply its strategy, consisting of six pillars named CARDIO, shorthand for Care, Access, policy Reform, Data and digital, Intersectoral collaboration and local Ownership.

Advancing an Age-Friendly NYC

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2017

Journal title

Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine

Volume

94

Issue

3

Page(s)

317-318
Abstract
Abstract
~

An integrated clinical correlation course in the neurosciences for first-year medical students

Boufford, J. I. E., Talalla, A., Boufford, J. I., & Lass, S. L. (n.d.).

Publication year

1974

Journal title

Journal of Medical Education

Volume

49

Issue

3

Page(s)

253-263
Abstract
Abstract
An increasing number of medical schools are undertaking substantial curricular revisions embodying such concepts as small group teaching, early patient contact, and active student participation in the learning process, all within the organ system approach to learning. One system that seems especially suited to the new approach is that of the neurosciences. A clinical correlation course in the neurosciences was conducted for freshman medical students at the University of Southern California in 1970. Twenty three instructors, all practicing clinicians and most of them neurosurgeons, provided small group experiences for the 98 students during the seven week course. This report contains a description of the design, coordination, implementation, and evaluation of the course and of the major factors which contributed to its successful outcome. The evaluation data provide some interesting insights into this teaching learning process that are applicable to many educational experiences.

Andrew Pattullo Lecture. Health future : the managerial agenda.

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

1999

Journal title

The Journal of health administration education

Volume

17

Issue

4

Page(s)

271-295
Abstract
Abstract
~

Community Oriented Primary Care: Training for Urban Practice

Boufford, J. I. E., Boufford, J. I., & Shonubi, P. A. (n.d.).

Publication year

1986
Abstract
Abstract
~

COVID-19 reveals the systemic nature of urban health globally

Boufford, J. I. E., Gatzweiler, F., Fu, B., Rozenblat, C., Su, H. J., Luginaah, I., Corburn, J., Boufford, J. I., Vela Valdes, J., Nguendo-Yongsi, B., Howden-Chapman, P., Singh, R. B., Cooper, R., Oni, T., & Zhu, Y. G. (n.d.).

Publication year

2021

Journal title

Cities and Health

Volume

5

Issue

sup1

Page(s)

S32-S36
Abstract
Abstract
Statement by the scientific committee* of the International Science Council’s Programme on Urban Health and Wellbeing, on critical elements of urban health action in response to the epidemic.

Crisis, leadership, consensus : The past and future federal role in health

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

1999

Journal title

Journal of Urban Health

Volume

76

Issue

2

Page(s)

192-206
Abstract
Abstract
This paper touches on patterns of federal government involvement in the health sector since the late 18th century to the present and speculates on its role in the early decades of the 21st century. Throughout the history of the US, government involvement in the health sector came only in the face of crisis, only when there was widespread consensus, and only through sustained leadership. One of the first health-related acts of Congress came about as a matter of interstate commerce regarding the dilemma as to what to do about treating merchant seamen who had no affiliation with any state. Further federal actions were implemented to address epidemics, such as from yellow fever, that traveled from state to state through commercial ships. Each federal action was met with concern and resistance from states' rights advocates, who asserted that the health of the public was best left to the states and localities. It was not until the early part of the 20th century that a concern for social well-being, not merely commerce, drove the agenda for public health action. Two separate campaigns for national health insurance, as well as a rapid expansion of programs to serve the specific health needs of specific populations, led finally to the introduction of Medicaid and Medicare in the 1960s, the most dramatic example of government intervention in shaping the personal health care delivery system in the latter half of the 20th century. As health costs continued to rise and more and more Americans lacked adequate health insurance, a perceived crisis led President Clinton to launch his 1993 campaign to insure every American - the third attempt in this century to provide universal coverage. While the crisis was perceived by many, there was no consensus on action, and leadership outside government was missing. Today, the health care crisis still looms. Despite an economic boom, 1 million Americans lose their health insurance each year, with 41 million Americans, or 15% of the population, lacking coverage. Private premiums are going up again as federal programs are capped and the lack of a federal framework for quality assurance leads to growing problems of access and quality that will need to be addressed as we enter the 21st century. What role will government play?.

Critical Issues of Public Service Education

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2003

Journal title

Journal of Public Affairs Education

Volume

9

Issue

1

Page(s)

1-5
Abstract
Abstract
Jo Ivey Boufford, president of the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration, is a professor of Health Policy and Public Service in the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service of New York University. She was dean of the Wagner School from 1997 to 2002. Boufford delivered this address at NASPAA's annual conference in October 2002.

Evaluating self-help support groups for medical students

Boufford, J. I. E., Goetzel, R. Z., Croen, L. G., Shelov, S., Boufford, J. I., & Levin, G. (n.d.).

Publication year

1984

Journal title

Journal of Medical Education

Volume

59

Issue

4

Page(s)

331-340
Abstract
Abstract
Self-help support groups for medical students represent one strategy for dealing with the emotional stresses of medical training and the diminished human sensitivity of students that often accompanies that experience. Support groups at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine were evaluated by 26 students who completed a nine-part questionnaire. The respondents indicated that they were primarily drawn to these groups because of a desire for social affiliation and an opportunity to express their feelings in a “safe” environment. Members shared in the leadership responsibilities of the group and dealt with external personal problems of the students rather than with the internal group dynamics. The gains derived from participation in these groups included opportunities for nonprofessional contact with faculty members, getting help and support from fellow students, and participation in stimulating discussions about the medical field. Students rated the groups as “meaningful” and expressed a desire for more frequent meetings.

Fatal flows - Doctors on the move

Boufford, J. I. E., Chen, L. C., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2005

Journal title

New England Journal of Medicine

Volume

353

Issue

17

Page(s)

1850-1852
Abstract
Abstract
~

Fatal flows - Doctors on the move

Boufford, J. I. E., Chen, L. C., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2005

Journal title

New England Journal of Medicine

Volume

353

Issue

17

Page(s)

1850-1852
Abstract
Abstract
~

Federal programs and Indian country : A time for reinvention

Boufford, J. I. E., Boufford, J. I., & Lee, P. R. (n.d.).

Publication year

1998

Journal title

Public Health Reports

Volume

113

Issue

1

Page(s)

34-37
Abstract
Abstract
~

Federally Supported Primary Care Training Programs and Pediatric Careers

Boufford, J. I. E., Shelov, S. P., Alpert, J. J., Rayman, I., Straus, J. H., Fallon, S., & Boufford, J. (n.d.).

Publication year

1987

Journal title

American Journal of Diseases of Children

Volume

141

Issue

1

Page(s)

65-66
Abstract
Abstract
~

Focusing on Health to Advance Sustainable Urban Transitions

Boufford, J. I. E., Thomas, Y. F., Boufford, J. I., & Talukder, S. H. (n.d.).

Publication year

2016

Journal title

Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine

Volume

93

Issue

1

Page(s)

1-5
Abstract
Abstract
~

Fostering capacity building and multidisciplinary urban health research in Latin America

Boufford, J. I. E., Sarmiento, O. L., Grant, M., Caiaffa, W. T., Lovasi, G. S., Boufford, J. I., Eijkermans, G., Indvik, K., & Baldovino-Chiquillo, L. (n.d.).

Publication year

2023

Journal title

Cities and Health

Volume

7

Issue

1

Page(s)

1-8
Abstract
Abstract
~

Health policymaking: the role of the federal government

Boufford, J. I. E., Boufford, J. I., & Lee, P. R. (n.d.).

Publication year

2002
Abstract
Abstract
~

Healthcare in a land called peoplepower : Nothing about me without me

Boufford, J. I. E., Delbanco, T., Berwick, D. M., Boufford, J. I., Edgman-Levitan, P. A., Ollenschläger, G., Plamping, D., & Rockefeller, R. G. (n.d.).

Publication year

2001

Journal title

Health Expectations

Volume

4

Issue

3

Page(s)

144-150
Abstract
Abstract
In a 5-day retreat at a Salzburg Seminar attended by 64 individuals from 29 countries, teams of health professionals, patient advocates, artists, reporters and social scientists adopted the guiding principle of 'nothing about me without me' and created the country of PeoplePower. Designed to shift health care from 'biomedicine' to 'infomedicine', patients and health workers throughout PeoplePower join in informed, shared decision-making and governance. Drawing, where possible, on computer-based guidance and communication technologies, patients and clinicians contribute actively to the patient record, transcripts of clinical encounters are shared, and patient education occurs primarily in the home, school and community-based organizations. Patients and clinicians jointly develop individual 'quality contracts', serving as building blocks for quality measurement and improvement systems that aggregate data, while reflecting unique attributes of individual patients and clinicians. Patients donate process and outcome data to national data banks that fuel epidemiological research and evidence-based improvement systems. In PeoplePower hospitals, constant patient and employee feedback informs quality improvement work teams of patients and health professionals. Volunteers work actively in all units, patient rooms are information centres that transform their shape and decor as needs and individual preferences dictate, and arts and humanities programmes nourish the spirit. In the community, from the earliest school days the citizenry works with health professionals to adopt responsible health behaviours. Communities join in selecting and educating health professionals and barter systems improve access to care. Finally, lay individuals partner with professionals on all local, regional and national governmental and private health agencies.

How federal laws are made--and what we should be doing about it.

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. (n.d.).

Publication year

1982

Journal title

Journal of the American Medical Women's Association

Volume

37

Issue

5

Page(s)

115-117
Abstract
Abstract
~

How to address non-communicable diseases in urban Africa

Boufford, J. I. E., Hunter-Adams, J., Yongsi, B. N., Dzasi, K., Parnell, S., Boufford, J. I., Pieterse, E., & Oni, T. (n.d.).

Publication year

2017

Journal title

The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology

Volume

5

Issue

12

Page(s)

932-934
Abstract
Abstract
~

Innovating healthcare delivery to address noncommunicable diseases in low-income settings : The example of hypertension

Boufford, J. I. E., Piot, P., Aerts, A., Wood, D. A., Lamptey, P., Oti, S., Connell, K., Dorairaj, P., Boufford, J. I., Caldwell, A., & Perel, P. (n.d.).

Publication year

2016

Journal title

Future Cardiology

Volume

12

Issue

4

Page(s)

401-403
Abstract
Abstract
London Dialogue event, The Hospital Club, 24 Endell St, London, WC2H 9HQ, London, UK, 1 December 2015 Hypertension is a global health issue causing almost 10 million deaths annually, with a disproportionate number occurring in low- and middle-income countries. The condition can be managed effectively, but there is a need for innovation in healthcare delivery to alleviate its burden. This paper presents a number of innovative delivery models from a number of different countries, including Kenya, Ghana, Barbados and India. These models were presented at the London Dialogue event, which was cohosted by the Novartis Foundation and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Centre for Global Noncommunicable Diseases on 1 December 2015. It is argued that these models are applicable not only to hypertension, but provide valuable lessons to address other noncommunicable diseases.

Leadership development for global health

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

2005
Abstract
Abstract
~

Managing the unmanageable : Public hospital systems

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

1991

Journal title

The International Journal of Health Planning and Management

Volume

6

Issue

2

Page(s)

143-154
Abstract
Abstract
There are significant challenges to those who work in large public health care delivery systems: political imperatives; resource constraints; sometimes rigid personnel systems; and, the reality that everything occurs in a public forum. The fact that many nations are reviewing and, in some instances, restructuring their national health care systems, has added to the complexity and feeling of continual turbulence experienced by their managers. State run systems like that in the United Kingdom are introducing market forces to increase effectiveness and value for money; while market systems, like that in the United States, are increasing regulatory interventions to achieve the kind of cost control available to countries with large public systems which operate with global budgets. Public hospitals in the United States offer examples of public institutions operating in a highly competitive market environment. A decade of management changes undertaken to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), the largest public hospital system in the United States, is presented as a case study of public health services and public management in a market environment.

Marijuana : current federal law remains in effect.

Boufford, J. I. E., Boufford, J. I., & Richard, M. M. (n.d.).

Publication year

1997

Journal title

Connecticut medicine

Volume

61

Issue

4

Page(s)

229-230
Abstract
Abstract
~

Marijuana-controlled substance?

Boufford, J. I. E., Boufford, J. I., & Richard, M. M. (n.d.).

Publication year

1997

Journal title

Delaware medical journal

Volume

69

Issue

3

Page(s)

141-142
Abstract
Abstract
~

Models for increasing access : strengthening community health centers & a national health service corps.

Boufford, J. I. E., & Boufford, J. I. (n.d.).

Publication year

1990

Journal title

Journal of health care for the poor and underserved

Volume

1

Issue

1

Page(s)

107-115 discussion 123
Abstract
Abstract
~

Contact

jo.boufford@nyu.edu 708 Broadway New York, NY, 10003