2002 National STD Conference - Speaker Biographies — Press Briefing, March 5, 2002

• Valdiserri
• Berman
• DeLisle

Ronald O. Valdiserri, M.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Ronald O. Valdiserri is currently the Deputy Director of the National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHSTP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in Atlanta, Georgia.

Prior to joining CDC in 1989, Dr. Valdiserri was Director of the Falk Clinic Laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh. He held academic appointments in both the School of Medicine and the Graduate School of Public Health. While at the University of Pittsburgh, he served as a co-investigator on the first federally funded "natural history" study of AIDS and later, as an investigator on the National Institutes of Health AIDS Clinical Trials Group.

Throughout his career, Dr. Valdiserri has had an abiding interest in community health. As Chairperson of the Medical Advisory Committee of the Pittsburgh Free Clinic, he provided programmatic oversight to community-based contraceptive and STD services for high-risk adolescents and young adults. His work with the Family Planning Council of Western Pennsylvania included implementing a regional system to train nurse-practitioners to provide HIV counseling to clients seeking contraceptive care.

During his tenure at CDC, Dr. Valdiserri has held several public health leadership positions, including Director of the Division of Public Health Laboratory Systems and Deputy Director for HIV in the former National Center for Prevention Services. Among his other accomplishments, Dr. Valdiserri played a key role in guiding the national implementation of HIV Prevention Community Planning - an innovative approach to improving the targeting, cultural relevance, and scientific underpinnings of publicly funded HIV prevention activities, nationwide.

Dr. Valdiserri has written numerous scholarly articles on the scientific and policy aspects of HIV/AIDS prevention, including one of the first published randomized trials of a peer-led, small group intervention promoting sexual risk reduction among gay men. He has authored a textbook on the design, implementation, and evaluation of AIDS prevention programs, published in 1989 by Rutgers University Press. In May 1994, Cornell University Press published Dr. Valdiserri's book of essays on AIDS, "Gardening in Clay".

Stuart M. Berman, M.D., Sc.M.

Dr. Stuart M. Berman currently serves as chief of the Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch in the Division of STD Prevention at CDC.

Prior to his present position, Dr. Berman served in CDC's Office of the Director, coordinating an effort in collaboration with the National Counsel of STD Directors to develop a performance management system for the national STD prevention program. In addition, Dr. Berman served as Chief of the Adolescent Activities Unit, where he was responsible for integrating, directing and strengthening Division activities to prevent STDs and their complications among adolescents in the United States. He is board certified in pediatrics and preventive medicine, and is a commissioned captain and senior surgeon in the U.S. Public Health Service.

During his tenure at CDC, Dr. Berman has held several public health leadership positions, including Special Assistant for Perinatal and Adolescent Studies, Medical Epidemiologist, Preventative Medicine Resident and Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer. He has assisted in national, international, epidemiologic and evaluation efforts concerning STD, HIV infection, and maternal and child health. Previous responsibilities at CDC include strategic planning for the Division of STD prevention, development and coordination of demonstration projects designed to prevent perinatal transmission of HIV, and various studies on congenital syphilis and chlamydia infections.

Prior to joining CDC in 1983, Dr. Berman served as a pediatrician in several clinics in Massachusetts. In addition to his recently completed Master's degree from Harvard School of Public Health, Dr. Berman received his undergraduate degree from Lehigh University and earned a degree in medicine from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He has written numerous scholarly publications on STD prevention, screening, treatment and trends among adolescents.

Susan DeLisle, A.R.N.P., M.P.H.

As chief of the Program Development and Support Branch (PDSB), in the Division of STD Prevention at CDC, Susan DeLisle oversees the nation's STD programs. Her branch supports 65 project areas through numerous grants and 250 field staff. Ms. DeLisle is the primary architect and manger of the Syphilis Elimination Rapid Response Teams and her Branch has the primary responsibility for guiding and assisting local programs in their Syphilis Elimination efforts. Ms. DeLisle's other responsibilities at PDSB include development of new and innovative STD activities, oversight of quality and management of programs, review and evaluation of grant applications, distribution of funds, and provision of consultation and technical expertise to state and local health authorities, government officials, and the Division of STD Prevention at CDC. Prior to her present position, Ms. DeLisle was Coordinator of Infertility Prevention Activities in the Division of STD Prevention at CDC.

Ms. DeLisle has long been committed to reducing the harm caused by STDs in the United States. As an OB/GYN nurse practitioner for a local public health agency, she provided clinical services in family planning, prenatal, STD, and other health care to low income men and women. In her work with the Seattle office of a health care training and consulting agency, she coordinated development of all training and consultation activities delivered to a variety of public health agencies. Before joining CDC in 1994, Ms. DeLisle was Director of the Chlamydia Prevention Project in the Pacific Northwest region, where she oversaw chlamydia screening and treatment activities at hundreds of clinics and health centers in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.

Ms. DeLisle received her Masters Degree in Public Health from the University of Hawaii in 1982, and earned her Nurse Practitioner Certification in Women's Health Care in 1992. She has written numerous scholarly publications on STD prevention programs and strategies, focusing particularly on approaches to chlamydia screening and infertility prevention.