Alumni Profile

According to Robert Rolfs, MD, MPH, "Data are only useful if they're turned into information for people [to use] to make decisions." That thinking was behind Robert's spearheading the development of Utah's Center for Health Data, which created a user-friendly Web site (http://ibis.health.utah.gov/home/welcome.html) that contains data accessible to anyone seeking health information, from public health program managers to citizens wishing to become better informed about and more involved in their own health care. The site contains information collected from a variety of sources -- medical research, population-based surveys, birth and death rates, and ER (emergency room) visits and other hospital records -- on a huge range of topics, from what to expect if you're facing gallbladder removal, to how to eat more nutritiously, to Utah's vital statistics. The Web site allows the user to search by key word or subject area, which makes finding information easy. Other states have used this award-winning program as a model in setting up their own Web sites.

Robert has carried his approach to sharing information as a way to solve problems and improve health into his position as state epidemiologist for the Utah Department of Health, a position he has held for the last 6 years. He has focused on communicable and environmental disease epidemiology, and much of his current work involves trying to solve two "outbreaks" in the state: a dramatic increase in the number of deaths from overdoses from illegal drug use and an increase in deaths from prescription pain medications. To address both problems, he brought together individuals and groups directly affected by each issue. Robert explains that each stakeholder brings a unique perspective to the issue that helps in understanding not only the breadth of the problem—from its personal impact to huge social and financial ramifications—but also what measures will help reduce it. Stakeholders affected by the overuse of prescription pain medications included patients who were put on pain medications and then unable to get off of them, physicians who were under pressure to treat pain aggressively, families who had lost loved ones to deaths from pain medications, health insurers, public health specialists, and the general public. The Prescription Pain Management and Education Program will use information from the coalition to educate physicians who prescribe these medications, patients who receive them, and the general public.

Robert started his career in health as a physician and taught medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, located in Denver. He was attracted to epidemiology as a way to enhance his skills as a medical researcher, and became a member of the CDC's (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Epidemic Intelligence Service in 1986. He received his MPH degree in epidemiology from the Extended MPH Degree Program in 1998. He keeps his physician skills sharp by working half day a week at a health clinic that serves homeless individuals and families; he's also on the clinic's board of directors. The daily and weekly challenges he faces keep him energized, and he says, "As long as I keep learning, I'll stay with it."

Robert keeps himself healthy—mentally and physically—by going for long bike rides—really long bike rides. Once a year, for the past 5 years, he has ridden from Logan, Utah, to Jackson, Wyoming—in one day. It's a 206-mile trip. Obviously, he's a guy who knows how to go the distance, and Utahans should feel confident that their public health is in good hands.