NYU School of Medicine has created a new Department of Population Health focused on research to improve human health at the population level. Marc Gourevitch, MD, MPH, professor of population health and medicine, is the inaugural chair.

Population health is a field of rapidly escalating importance. Its focus on populations of persons rather than individuals fosters a proactive approach to disease through prevention and interventions at the level of health care systems and communities. By bridging diverse yet related disciplines of health care delivery, social and environmental determinants of health, biostatistics and epidemiology, the department will advance discovery, translation and dissemination of health-related interventions to optimize their impact on the health of populations in New York City communities and around the world.

The department will focus on a wide range of factors affecting health and quality of life, said Robert Grossman, MD, dean and CEO of NYU Langone Medical Center. It will foster "collaboration among researchers with a broad spectrum of expertise, resulting in the advancement of evidence-based research and improvements in the health of entire communities."

By linking the divisions of biostatistics and epidemiology with initiatives in comparative effectiveness and decision science, behavior change research, health policy and economics, global and community health, and delivery system analysis and design, the new department will provide a unique intellectual and training environment, drawing investigators from diverse disciplines across the medical center and NYU.

"A focus on improving the health of populations is fundamental to 21st century health care," said Dr. Gourevitch who previously was director of the Division of General Internal Medicine. "The complexity of the real-world challenges we face demands solutions that bridge diverse disciplines and approaches."