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"Richard Vogt exemplifies the best in public health epidemiology, and hiscareer is a testament to how much the contributions of a single dedicatedperson can change lives for the better," CSTE President Eddy Bresnitz, M.D.,M.S. said. "It is a particular pleasure to present this award to Dr. Vogthere in Colorado, where his medical career began, and where his public healthleadership continues to the present day."
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Since 2001 Dr. Vogt has been Executive Director of the Tri-County HealthDepartment, serving three Denver-area counties. During his tenure with thedepartment, which serves a community of 1.2 million people, or about onequarter of Colorado's population, Dr. Vogt has led efforts to increaseimmunizations among medically underserved children. His innovative approachhas included intensive outreach to children of clients in the Women, Infantsand Children nutrition program and at child care centers, producingsignificant improvements in local vaccination rates.
Dr. Vogt began his career in Colorado, where he completed hisundergraduate, graduate and post-graduate medical education. Later, Dr. Vogtworked in various public health positions across the nation, including servingas State Epidemiologist in public health departments in Vermont and Hawaii.In 1997 Dr. Vogt joined the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)as a Medical Officer and was assigned to work with the World HealthOrganization as advisor to the Egyptian Ministry of Health. After three yearsin Egypt, he returned to the United States and became a consultant to theDenver Public Health Department in the CDC-funded Denver Center for AdvancedPublic Health Preparedness.
During each of his professional positions Dr. Vogt received co-appointments at medical schools and schools of public health. Currently, heis Clinical Professor in the Department of Prevention and Biometrics at theUniversity of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and a Fellow in the AmericanCollege of Epidemiology. Dr. Vogt also is the current president of the PublicHealth Directors of Colorado and a member of the Infectious Disease Workgroupof the National Association of City and County Health Officials.
The author of more than 80 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Vogt isespecially well regarded for his papers illustrating the use of public healthsurveillance, including hospital discharge data and other unconventionalsurveillance sources, to prevent or reduce the impact of illness and injuries.A longtime member of CSTE, Dr. Vogt served two terms as the organization'spresident, and was a member of the CSTE Executive Committee for eight years.In 1991 when CSTE's national office was established as part of a CDCCooperative Agreement, Dr. Vogt spent six months as the organization's ActingExecutive Director.
"Dr. Vogt is a public health advocate, a talented teacher, and anexceptional epidemiologist who brings enormous credit to himself and to ourfield," Dr. Bresnitz said. "We are proud to award him CSTE's highest honor."
The Pump Handle Award presentation is part of the CSTE 2008 AnnualConference, currently underway in Denver. It commemorates the actions of Dr.John Snow, a 19th century physician and the "Father of Applied Epidemiology"who ended a cholera epidemic in an English village by removing the pump handlefrom a contaminated well.
CSTE is a professional associa
