Newswise — WASHINGTON – The Geiger Gibson Program has named Tess Stack Kuenning as its 2013 Geiger Gibson Distinguished Visitor in Community Health Policy. Ms. Kuenning becomes the 9th person to hold this position, since the Distinguished Visitorship program was established in 2005. A full list of past Distinguished Visitors can be viewed at http://sphhs.gwu.edu/departments/healthpolicy/ggprogram/distinguished_visitors.cfm
The Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy is a special initiative of The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS). Housed in the Department of Health Policy, and named after Drs. H. Jack Geiger and Count Gibson, pioneers in community health centers and tireless advocates for human rights, the program aims to develop the next generation of community health leaders through education, research, and advancement of community health policy, practice and leadership.
Since 1995, Tess Stack Kuenning, CNS, MS, RN, has served as the executive director of Bi-State Primary Care Association, one of the nation’s premier primary care associations serving Vermont and New Hampshire. In this capacity, her work includes working with federal, regional and state policymakers, health policy organizations, foundations and payers to develop strategies and programs that promote, sustain and build community-based primary health care services and infrastructure to assure access to appropriate, affordable and high quality medical, behavioral and oral health care to improve the health status for everyone in Vermont and New Hampshire. The organization’s work is on population health but with an expertise and focus on low and moderate income families. Ms. Kuenning is engaged in federal and state health care reform efforts including health care delivery, financing and payment reform initiatives.
Prior to joining Bi-State, Ms. Kuenning served in the U.S. Public Health Service as its Principal Public Health Advisor in the New England region, addressing public health programs and planning and development for federally funded programs. Community and Migrant Health Centers and Health Care for the Homeless were among her areas of focus. Ms. Kuenning also worked as a nurse consultant for the Health Care Financing Administration (the predecessor federal agency to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)) where she served as a specialist in both Medicare and Medicaid matters. Ms. Kuenning holds a Masters in Nursing and Public/Community Health, and is a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Maternal and Child Health. She has served as a clinician in primary care, tertiary care and trauma settings. In addition, Ms. Kuenning served as a Maternal and Child Health educator and clinician in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Paula M. Lantz, PhD, Professor and Chair of the SPHHS Department of Health Policy, said “Tess Kuenning’s visitorship offers our students and faculty a wonderful opportunity to learn from one of the nation’s most effective leaders in health center policy and practice at the state and regional levels.”
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About the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy: The Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy is a special initiative of the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. Housed in the Department of Health Policy, and named after Drs. H. Jack Geiger and Count Gibson, pioneers in community health centers and tireless advocates for human rights, the program aims to develop the next generation of community health leaders through education, research, and advancement of community health policy, practice and leadership. The Geiger Gibson Program also offers the Bellber Post-Doctoral Fellowship, a health policy elective for medical students and residents and scholarship opportunities. For more information on the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy, visit http://www.gwumc.edu/sphhs/departments/healthpolicy/ggprogram
About the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services:Established in July 1997, the School of Public Health and Health Services brought together three longstanding university programs in the schools of medicine, business, and education and is now the only school of public health in the nation’s capital. Today, more than 1,100 students from nearly every U.S. state and more than 40 nations pursue undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral-level degrees in public health. http://sphhs.gwu.edu/
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