Ramón A. Hernandez, DrPH, MPH

Dr. Ramón A. Hernandez, DrPH, MPH, is the Associate Director for the Center for Community Health and the Section Chief for Community Health in the Department of Pediatrics at UC San Diego, School of Medicine. He is part of a dynamic team focused on preventing chronic diseases and promoting health equity through policy, systems, and environmental changes in local communities with the largest health disparities. In his role, Dr. Hernandez co-leads the implementation and sustainability efforts, including ways to institutionalize the Center for Community Health as a hub for community health and equity innovation.

Dr. Hernandez has been with UC San Diego School of Medicine for seven years where he has been the Project Director for the HRSA funded Health Career Opportunities Program (HCOP) and the Hispanic Center of Excellence (HCOE). He also was the Training Core Coordinator for NIH-funded Community Research Center for Health Disparities (CRCHD). In these roles he co-led efforts strengthening the academic pipeline for underrepresented and disadvantaged students; developed a longitudinal cultural competency curriculum for medical students; and, increased training opportunities for students interested in the biomedical, behavioral, and health sciences.

Dr. Hernandez has over twenty years of local and national experience in adolescent and young adult development; minority and urban health; adolescent mental health; and, academic diversity and retention programs. His passion is creating and sustaining supportive and equitable environments where every young person can be healthy, thrive and succeed. He has worked extensively on the planning, implementation, and evaluation of youth and community development programs across the United States. He has worked in Boston, Chicago, Denver and for the last 18 has been blessed to call San Diego, and the city of Imperial Beach home.

He received both his Masters of Public Health in Health Service Administration and his Doctorate of Public Health in Maternal Child Health at Boston University School of Public Health. His dissertation was focused on sustaining school-based mental health services in San Diego City Schools.