“It’s often the case that our most successful researchers are also the greatest advocates.” This is an observation made by Michael Klag, Dean of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, writing in a recent letter to alumni of the School.  According to Klag, he was led to reflect on advocacy and its role at the School by a speech made recently at the School by Melinda Gates who was there to receive a Global Health Leadership Award.  

Klag’s reflections began with the recollection that when he interviewed for the job as dean he was told by a faculty member who interviewed him “We don’t do advocacy.”

According to Klag, some of the early science leaders at Johns Hopkins such as William Henry Welch and EV McCollum set the standard for scientist-advocates. In modern times, epidemiologists at the School such as Alfred Sommer for vitamin A, Susan Baker for injuries, and Jonathan Samet for multiple health issues, have advocated effectively from a science base.

For example, Sommer once reminded epidemiologists that data do not speak for themselves and that scientists should follow up on their leads and build a web of compelling evidence over time. He encouraged scientists at the workshop to engage in the messy political arena using solid evidence without becoming wild-eyed advocates.

Klag was quick to acknowledge that advocacy must rest on a solid scientific foundation. “At the School, we gather data according to rigorous standards and then analyze them to allow unbiased inferences. When the evidence is clear, we advocate for change that preserves health and prevents illness and injury.

In closing his letter, Klag noted “effective policy is the tip of the spear by which evidence becomes practice…we do advocacy because advocacy helps save lives.”