View source for John Howard (public health administrator)

{{Infobox Medical Person
|name              = John Howard
|box_width         =
|image             = John Howard of NIOSH.JPG
|image_width       = 150px
|caption           =
|birth_date        =
|birth_place       =
|death_date        =
|death_place       =
|profession        = Physician, professor, public health administrator
|specialism        = Public Health
|research_field    =
|known_for         = Director of NIOSH
|years_active      = 2002-2008, 2009-Present
|education         = MD, Loyola University; Master of Occupational Health, Harvard; JD, UCLA; Master of Laws, George Washington University
|work_institutions = National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, California Occupational Safety and Health Administration, University of California, Irvine
|prizes            =
|relations         =
}}

{{otherpeople2|John Howard (disambiguation)}}

'''John Howard''' is a physician, professor, and public health administrator. He served a 6-year term as the director of the [[National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]] and was appointed to be a special coordinator to respond to the health effects of the [[September 11 attacks]]. In this role Howard advocated for rescue workers, introducing a program to provide screening, medical exams, and treatment for them.<ref name=WTC>{{cite web
  | last =
  | first =
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = The World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program
  | work = NIOSH Publication 2007-109
  | publisher = National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
  | date = March 2007
  | url = http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2007-109/
  | format =
  | doi =
  | accessdate = November 18, 2008}}
</ref> In 2009, Howard was again appointed as director of NIOSH and as World Trade Center Programs coordinator for [[Health and Human Services|HHS]].<ref name=hhs>{{cite web
  | last =
  | first =
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = Secretary Sebelius Announces New Director of CDC's National Institute
  | work =
  | publisher = U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  | date =
  | url = http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2009pres/09/20090903d.html
  | format = Press release, September 3, 2009
  | doi =
  | accessdate = September 15, 2009}}</ref>

==Early career==
===Education===
John Howard received a doctor of medicine degree from Loyola University in 1974 (cum laude).<ref name=Heidorn>{{cite journal
  | last = Heidorn
  | first = Dave
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = Safety's #1 DC Issue
  | journal = Professional Safety
  | volume = 53
  | issue = 4
  | pages = 27
  | publisher =
  | location = Des Plaines
  | date = April 2008
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</ref> To this he added a Master of Occupational Health from the [[Harvard School of Public Health]] in 1982. In 1986, Dr. Howard earned a Juris Doctor from the [[University of California, Los Angeles]] (UCLA), and a Master of Laws in Administrative Law and Economic Regulation from [[The George Washington University]] in 1987. In addition, Dr. Howard is a board-certified occupational physician and has written numerous papers on occupational health law and policy.<ref name=Nash>{{cite news
  | last = Nash
  | first = James
  | coauthors =
  | title = John Howard Appointed New Director of NIOSH
  | work = EHS Today
  | pages =
  | language =
  | publisher =
  | date = January 3, 2002
  | url = http://ehstoday.com/news/ehs_imp_35587/
  | accessdate = November 11, 2008}}
</ref>

===Physician and professor===
Dr. Howard began his career in occupational health in 1979 as an internist at the UCLA School of Medicine pulmonary fellowship program at [[Cedars-Sinai Medical Center]]. His clinical work involved [[asbestos]]-exposed shipyard workers, and he published research findings related to workplace exposure and [[occupational lung disease]].<ref name=ISEA>{{cite journal
  | last =
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  | coauthors =
  | title = NIOSH's John Howard Receives ISEA Distinguished Service Award
  | journal = Occupational Hazards
  | volume = 70
  | issue = 2
  | pages = 42
  | publisher =
  | location = Cleveland
  | date = February 2008
  | url =
  | doi =
  | id =
  | accessdate = }}
</ref> He served as a medical director and chief clinician at the Philip Mandelker AIDS Prevention Clinic.<ref>{{cite web
  | last =
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  | coauthors =
  | title = John Howard
  | work = Marquis Who's Who, 2008
  | publisher = Gale
  | date = 2008
  | url = http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC
  | format =
  | doi =
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</ref>

He also worked as an assistant professor of environmental and occupational medicine at the [[University of California, Irvine]].<ref name=Smith>{{cite news
  | last = Smith
  | first = Sandy
  | coauthors =
  | title = The 50 Most Influential EHS Leaders
  | work = EHS Today
  | pages =
  | language =
  | publisher =
  | date = September 1, 2008
  | url = http://ehstoday.com/mag/50_influential_ehs_leaders/index.html
  | accessdate = November 17, 2008}}
</ref>

==Department of Industrial Relations, California==
John Howard served as the chief of the [[California Occupational Safety and Health Administration|Division of Occupational Safety and Health]] in California's Department of Industrial Relations beginning in 1991. There he administered a staff of nearly 1,000 and all the state's occupational and public safety programs.<ref name=occHaz02>{{cite journal
  | last =
  | first =
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = Dr. John Howard appointed new director
  | journal = Occupational Hazards
  | volume = 64
  | issue = 8
  | pages = 16
  | publisher =
  | location = Cleveland
  | date = August 2002
  | url =
  | doi =
  | id =
  | accessdate = }}
</ref> Through his administration of the division, Howard bolstered his reputation in the field as a passionate and able leader.  He received praise for successfully implementing a controversial statewide ergonomic standard.<ref name=Heidorn />  He served in this capacity for more than a decade.<ref name=Heidorn />

==National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health==
===Appointment===
[[Linda Rosenstock]] resigned in November 2000 as the director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The position was not filled until July 15, 2002, when [[Tommy Thompson]], [[United States Department of Health and Human Services|Health and Human Services]] Secretary placed John Howard in the post. The gap between Rosenstock and Howard was the longest between directors in the agency's 31 year history.<ref name=Heidorn /> The appointment was immediately praised by several organizations including the [[American Industrial Hygiene Association]] and [[AFL-CIO]].<ref name=Nash />

===A shift in focus===
Under Dr. Howard, NIOSH shifted its research efforts to focus on emerging technologies. Howard sought practical applications for the new research. This included an initiative called "[[research-to-practice]]" (r2p) to ensure that NIOSH's findings would turn into practices and products that would ultimately benefit workers.   He directed research on [[mining]], [[nanotechnology]], [[Workplace stress|job stress]], and [[ergonomics]].<ref name=ISEA /> Howard summarized the adjustments the Institute needed to make:
{{Quote|[NIOSH's] challenges used to be those that normally would have had a very widespread risk factor associated with them - chemical agents and physical agents like [[asbestos]] and [[radiation]]. A lot of the studies and interventions to eliminate those hazards have been done over the last 20 to 25 years. We're now dealing with issues that have personal risks, and it is more difficult to design strategies for causation and intervention studies to eliminate those risks, such as musculoskeletal injuries and work-related stress.<ref>{{cite journal
  | last = Nighswonger
  | first = Todd
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = Leading NIOSH into new challenges
  | journal = Occupational Hazards
  | volume = 64
  | issue = 10
  | pages = 36
  | publisher =
  | location = Cleveland
  | date = October 2002
  | url =
  | doi =
  | id =
  | accessdate = }}
</ref>}}

Howard expanded the [[National Occupational Research Agenda]] (NORA) instituted by his predecessor, Dr. Rosenstock, using it as a vehicle to work toward the Institute's updated aims.<ref>{{cite web
  | last =
  | first =
  | authorlink =
  | coauthors =
  | title = The National Occupational Research Agenda
  | work =
  | publisher = National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
  | date =
  | url = http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/NORA/
  | format =
  | doi =
  | accessdate = November 19, 2008}}
</ref>

===World Trade Center responders===
John Howard was appointed by President [[George W. Bush]] to be a special coordinator to handle the [[Health effects arising from the September 11 attacks|medical issues afflicting 9/11 rescue workers]], specifically those at the World Trade Center site. Howard introduced the World Trade Center (WTC) Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program, which offered medical help and screening to emergency workers.<ref name=WTC /><ref name=Heidorn />

===Approach===
As a public health administrator, Howard was admired for his ability to collaborate effectively, even with adversarial parties. He was noted for the tone of "openness and cooperation" he set<ref name=Heidorn /> and for listening to and seeking input from all available stakeholders.<ref name=occHaz02 />

===Removal from NIOSH===
As Dr. Howard's 6-year term approached its close, [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC) director [[Julie Gerberding]] met with him to inform him that he would not be reappointed.<ref name=Walter>{{cite news
  | last = Walter
  | first = Laura
  | coauthors =
  | title = Howards Term as NIOSH Director Ends July 14
  | work = EHS Today
  | pages =
  | language =
  | publisher =
  | date = July 9, 2008
  | url = http://ehstoday.com/ar/ehs_imp_81212/
  | accessdate = November 18, 2008}}
</ref> His term ended on July 14, 2008, in a "controversial decision that brought criticism from safety and health stakeholders".<ref name=Smith /> He completed his term and began serving as a temporary senior advisor to the CDC director. NIOSH associate director Christine Branche, Ph.D., served as acting director in Dr. Howard's place.<ref name=Walter />

==Reappointment at NIOSH==
On September 3, 2009, HHS Secretary [[Kathleen Sebelius]] announced Howard's reappointment as director of NIOSH and World Trade Center Programs coordinator for HHS.<ref name=hhs />

==External links==
*[http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, John}}
[[Category:National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]]
[[Category:Loyola University alumni]]
[[Category:George Washington University alumni]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:University of California, Los Angeles alumni]]
[[Category:2Fix]]