The PHS Spring 2024 Recap Newsletter highlighted Panagis Galiatsatos, MD, MHS, Associate Professor of Medicine,
and his new elective PHS course, entitled “Medicine for the Greater Good: Community Engagement’s Role in Health Systems.” We asked Dr. Galiatsatos about the topic and his experience teaching the course:

What is your course (AS.280.389) about and what drives your interest in this topic?

Medicine for the Greater Good captures over a decades worth of work in regards to the science and purpose of community engagement and health. It documents much of our team’s effort in various communities throughout Baltimore City and Maryland, and demonstrates the sociological purpose that emphasizes what and how community engagement can be effective in promoting health and wellness. Finally, we finish with real time in-person community events and community health worker testimonies to understand how community engagement brings population health and community health together and reaffirms medicine as a public trust.

How would you describe your teaching experience this semester?

My teaching experience was by far one of the most rewarding things of the semester. Honestly, my goal was more than teaching. It was aimed at hoping to inspire these students to understand the value of community engagement and (fingers crossed) impact their professional identity whereby they will continue this work when they are leaders. And judging from my mentoring meetings at the end of the semester, that goal was achieved! Even one of the students wrote about her community experience through this class into her personal statement. What I learned from this course is the students have an appetite to see in real time how physicians can tie in community engagement to overcome traditional healthcare’s known gaps in health promotion! More importantly, this class taught me that our future of health care and public health is in good hands.