News

 

Outstanding-Extraordinary U.S. One Health Leader Making Significant One Health Contributions

 

Cheryl M. Stroud, DVM, PhD, Executive Director, U.S. One Health Commission is also the Immediate Past Chair, North Carolina One Health Collaborative (NC OHC), Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Sciences, NC State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Immediate Past American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Representative to the One Health Commission. 

 

Dr. Stroud cstroud@onehealthcommission.org, a veterinarian, obtained her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree from Mississippi State University in 1974 and her Masters of Science and PhD from North Carolina State University in 1985 and 1990, respectively.  She received a 2015 honorary Diploma award from the American Veterinary Epidemiology Society (AVES).

 

She has enjoyed professional experiences in Industry, Academic Research / Teaching, Private Veterinary Practice and One Health. She grew up on a small, hobby farm in central Mississippi where she was surrounded by cows, horses, cats, dogs and open spaces. Before attending the school of veterinary medicine she worked in the poultry industry as manager of a quality control laboratory for a prominent, vertically-integrated, poultry company.

 

After graduation from the school of veterinary medicine she worked briefly in veterinary practice before going to North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine for a Masters and PhD in endocrine physiology. She then spent 8 years in basic research at Pennsylvania State University studying many topics, ranging from variant molecular forms of prolactin and growth hormone to reproductive cycles of women from populations around the world. When her family moved to Illinois in 1996 for her husband, also a DVM, PhD, to become Director of the Division of Education and Research for the American Veterinary Medical Association, she returned to private veterinary practice where she especially enjoyed practicing internal medicine and educating clients about zoonotic diseases (i.e., diseases transmissible from animals to humans).

 

Dr. Stroud’s deep passion for the One Health concept emerged in 2008 when she returned to North Carolina. While networking around the Research Triangle Park region of N.C. she identified a need to bring key Veterinary, Human, Public and Environmental health stakeholders in North Carolina together to work across disciplines. As a result of her exploratory efforts, in 2010 she helped create the North Carolina One Health Collaborative (NC OHC http://nconehealthcollaborative.weebly.com/index.html) and for over three years chaired its Steering Committee which includes veterinarians, physicians and other health scientist professionals and government officials from Duke University, University of North Carolina, NC State University, NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, NC Department of Public Health, to name a few. Since its inception, the NC OHC has sponsored over 80 local One Health topic sessions in a One Health Intellectual Exchange Group discussion series that engages MDs, DVMs/VMDs, PhDs, human and veterinary medical students and public health graduate students. Continuing today, this discussion series evolved to include and is running in parallel, a One Health course that is cross listed at Duke, UNC and NCSU.

 

Dr. Stroud was selected as AVMA’s representative to the One Health Commission (OHC http://www.onehealthcommission.org/) in spring 2011, was appointed Vice Chair of the OHC Board in 2012 and became Executive Director of the Commission in September, 2013, moving the Commission from Iowa to North Carolina. Until that time she had enjoyed part time clinical veterinary medical practice though her primary focus since 2010 has been educating, both locally and nationally, about One Health. In 2013 she also served on a National Biodefense Science Board working group on Situational Awareness, Strategic Implementation and Bio-Surveillance.

 

She believes strongly in interdisciplinary collaborations and seeks, via the One Health Commission, to connect One Health stakeholders into active Teams, creating strategic networks / partnerships that will educate about all One Health Issues. Her forte is bringing people together. 

 

Among her achievements since becoming the OHC director, Dr. Stroud was instrumental in improving, expanding and updating the OHC’s current website www.onehealthcommission.org. In addition she presciently consented to a visionary recommendation to promote a worldwide “One Health Day” https://www.onehealthcommission.org/en/eventscalendar/one_health_day/ from her exceptional Associate Executive Director Peter J. Costa, MPH, MCHES Biography; Mr. Costa was also recognized for his significant One Health contributions in 2016 by receiving an Honorary Diploma award from AVES. 

 

One of Dr. Stroud’s most significant collaborative achievements was to encourage close engagement between the OHC and the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team.  This has resulted in a valuable synergistic effort by having joint One Health ventures.   See “Notable One Health Commission/One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono Team Joint Collaborations” http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/news.php?query=March+1%2C+2017+-+%22One+Health+Happenings%21+%5BOne+Health+Commission+News%5D.

 

Notably, Dr. Stroud proceeded to form and lead a remarkably successful “One Health Day” coalition-planning committee https://www.onehealthcommission.org/en/eventscalendar/one_health_day/events_listing_2016/ including the One Health Platform Foundation (OHP) http://www.onehealthplatform.com/—a  prominent respected, leading international One Health organization and the One Health Initiative Autonomous pro bono team (OHI team) www.onehealthinitiative.com.  Financial funding is provided and handled via the OHC and OPH respectively.  The first ever One Health Day was initiated November 3, 2016 fostering over 150 events worldwide in many countries from the Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania regions.  The OHC, OHP and OHI team are currently coordinating efforts for this event to hopefully recur next year (2017) and indefinitely beyond.

 

Also see previously posted OHI website NEWS item about “U. S. One Health Commission Chair [Dr. Joann Lindenmayer, veterinarian] and notable “One Health” Leader - Monday, April 04, 2016” http://www.onehealthinitiative.com/news.php?query=U.+S.+One+Health+Commission+Chair%2C+A+Notable+%93One+Health%94+Leader+. 

 

Editor’s Note: Drs. Stroud and Lindenmayer, are recognized and admired for working “hand & glove” together and generously with other national and international One Health leaders/organizations, dealing with a variety of complex One Health issues.