Joia Mukherjee
Encyclopedia
Dr. Joia Mukherjee is a professor at Harvard Medical School
in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.
Mukherjee was born in what was then known as East Pakistan
(now Bangladesh
). Her father was a native of India and in 1972 her family was among the 10 million refugees in West Bengal fleeing the war in East Pakistan.
Mukherjee has a bachelors degree from the University of Michigan
, a masters degree from Michigan State University
and an MD from the University of Minnesota
. She did the first part of her residency at the University of Minnesota Hospital and then
trained in Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, and Pediatrics at the Massachusetts General Hospital
and has an MPH
from the Harvard School of Public Health
. Joia has been involved in health care access and human rights issues since 1989 in the United States, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the countries of the former Soviet Union. In 1999, she began working with Partners In Health
and in 2000 became Partners In Health's Medical Director. PIH is an international medical charity with clinical programs in Haiti, Rwanda, Lesotho, Malawi, Peru, Mexico, Russia, and inner-city Boston. Currently, Dr. Mukherjee also is the Director of the Institute of Health and Social Justice, the Advocacy arm of Partners In Health. Dr. Mukherjee consults for the World Health Organization
on the treatment of HIV
and MDR-TB in developing countries and is a member of the Executive Board of Health Action AIDS, a campaign conducted with Physicians for Human Rights to engage the US health professional community in the international advocacy and education effort to stop the global AIDS pandemic.
In rural Haiti, Dr. Mukherjee along with colleagues Drs. Paul Farmer
and Fernet Leandre has established a program to treat patients with HIV infection using highly active antiretroviral therapy. This program, the HIV Equity Initiative, was the first of its kind in a developing country and served as a model for the Millennium Development Goals, the WHO’s 3 by 5 initiative, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. Dr. Mukherjee is an associate professor at the Harvard Medical School where she teaches Social Medicine and Infectious Disease to medical students, residents and fellows. Her scholarly work focuses on the human-rights aspects of HIV treatment and on the implementation of complex health interventions in resource-poor settings.
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.
Mukherjee was born in what was then known as East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
(now Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
). Her father was a native of India and in 1972 her family was among the 10 million refugees in West Bengal fleeing the war in East Pakistan.
Mukherjee has a bachelors degree from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, a masters degree from Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
and an MD from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
. She did the first part of her residency at the University of Minnesota Hospital and then
trained in Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, and Pediatrics at the Massachusetts General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital is a teaching hospital and biomedical research facility in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts...
and has an MPH
Master of Public Health
The Master of Public Health and the Doctor of Public Health are multi-disciplinary professional degrees awarded for studies in areas related to public health....
from the Harvard School of Public Health
Harvard School of Public Health
The Harvard School of Public Health is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Area of the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of Mission Hill, which is next to Harvard Medical School. HSPH is considered a significant school focusing on health in the...
. Joia has been involved in health care access and human rights issues since 1989 in the United States, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the countries of the former Soviet Union. In 1999, she began working with Partners In Health
Partners In Health
Partners In Health is a Boston, Massachusetts-based non-profit health care organization dedicated to providing a "preferential option for the poor". It was founded in 1987 by Dr. Paul Farmer, Ophelia Dahl, Thomas J. White, Todd McCormack, and Dr...
and in 2000 became Partners In Health's Medical Director. PIH is an international medical charity with clinical programs in Haiti, Rwanda, Lesotho, Malawi, Peru, Mexico, Russia, and inner-city Boston. Currently, Dr. Mukherjee also is the Director of the Institute of Health and Social Justice, the Advocacy arm of Partners In Health. Dr. Mukherjee consults for the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
on the treatment of HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
and MDR-TB in developing countries and is a member of the Executive Board of Health Action AIDS, a campaign conducted with Physicians for Human Rights to engage the US health professional community in the international advocacy and education effort to stop the global AIDS pandemic.
In rural Haiti, Dr. Mukherjee along with colleagues Drs. Paul Farmer
Paul Farmer
Dr. Paul Edward Farmer is an American anthropologist and physician. He is currently the Kolokotrones University Professor at Harvard University, formerly the Presley Professor of Medical Anthropology in the Department of Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, an attending physician and Chief...
and Fernet Leandre has established a program to treat patients with HIV infection using highly active antiretroviral therapy. This program, the HIV Equity Initiative, was the first of its kind in a developing country and served as a model for the Millennium Development Goals, the WHO’s 3 by 5 initiative, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. Dr. Mukherjee is an associate professor at the Harvard Medical School where she teaches Social Medicine and Infectious Disease to medical students, residents and fellows. Her scholarly work focuses on the human-rights aspects of HIV treatment and on the implementation of complex health interventions in resource-poor settings.
External links
- Article on Joia Mukherjee Z-mag 2005
- Commencement address of Joia Mukherjee, University of Minnesota Medical School, 2005
- Biosketch of Joia Mukherjee, Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Video lecture of Joia Mukherjee, University of Wisconsin, 2007
- Book preface, Sickness and Wealth: the Corporate Assault on Global Health, by Joia Mukherjee
- Democracy Now! interview with Dr. Joia Mukherjee on HIV drugs and patent issues, 2007