(WASHINGTON, D.C.) The American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) congratulates Dr. Heidi Overton, a board-certified Preventive Medicine physician, on her recent nomination to lead the Food and Drug administration. While there is still important work surrounding Dr. Overton’s confirmation, ACPM is encouraged by the potential and emphasizes that Preventive Medicine education and certification provides physicians with extensive training in biostatistics, epidemiology, health systems management and more, knowledge critical to making decisions to protect America’s food, drug, cosmetics and dietary supplement supply available to the public.
“It’s evident that Preventive Medicine training provides physicians the skills necessary to improve health at individual and population levels,” stated Dr. Jill Waalen, ACPM President. Preventive Medicine physicians are equipped to drive transformational change to reform our sick-care system to one which truly values prevention.”
Physician expertise in prevention is instrumental in shifting the healthcare paradigm toward a proactive approach that focuses on improving overall health outcomes and reducing the burden of chronic diseases. ACPM continues to amplify the importance of a physician workforce knowledgeable and trained in prevention, and that fostering a healthcare system centered around wellness and prevention takes a workforce designed to implement it.
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For more information or to speak with an ACPM representative, please contact media@acpm.org
About ACPM:
The American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) is a professional medical society representing approximately 2,000 physicians, dedicated to the practice of preventive medicine; improving the health and quality of life of individuals, families, communities, and populations through disease prevention and health promotion. For more information about ACPM, visit www.acpm.org.
