About “Mad at/in Public Health Education”
An Essay Collection by Dielle Lundberg
Go to all essays in the collection.
In this collection of ten essays, I explore issues of disability-related access in public health and health sciences education, drawing from the rich existing scholarship from disability studies and disability justice communities, the writings of other mad, neurodivergent, and disabled people, and my own experiences, reflections, and lessons from my year and a half as a public health PhD student. It consolidates writings and other content from my time in the Department of Health Systems and Population Health at the University of Washington School of Public Health as an AHRQ T32 fellow from September 2022 to March 2024.
Two books that go into issues of academic ableism in far greater depth than I will in these 10 essays are Mad at School: Rhetorics of Mental Disability and Academic Life by Margaret Price and Ableism in Academia: Theorising experiences of disabilities and chronic illnesses in higher education edited by Nicole Brown and Jennifer Leigh. In addition to sharing some of my own experiences and reflections in a less formal writing style, a main goal of this essay collection is to show some examples of how issues of academic ableism raised in these two (and other related) works can show up in health education to spur change.
Essay Collection Table of Contents:
There are 10 essays in this series, covering distinct issues that are timely for exploration in public health education.
Part One: Alligator Talks
Essays One and Two were published in April 2024. Essay Three was published in May 2024. Essays Four and Five were published at the end of July 2024 as part of my healing and return to life.
Essay One. “I Was a Public Health PhD Student. How Many QALYs Did I Lose?”
Essay Two. “10 Questions Disabled Students Should Ask a PhD Program Before You Make Your Decision”
Essay Three. “How Alcoholics Anonymous Prepared Me for Being a Public Health PhD Student (and Helped Me Leave Before I Relapsed)”
Part Two: Some Alligators Regrow Limbs Themselves
Essays Six through Ten will be written, finished, and published in August or September 2024 or sometime later this year as I have time and energy.
Essay Six. “A Federal Policy Agenda for Protecting Disabled, Neurodivergent, and/or Mad Health Trainees Funded by the NIH and AHRQ”
Essay Seven. “Creating University Policies to Protect Disabled, Neurodivergent and/or Mad Health Trainees, Ensure Equal Opportunities, and Effectively Resolve Conflicts”
Essay Eight. “Building Public Health and Health Science PhD and Fellowship Programs that Effectively Support Disabled, Neurodivergent and/or Mad Health Trainees to Enter the Health Workforce”
Essay Nine. “Crip Time as a Paradigm Shift from Ableism to Access in Public Health Education and Practice”
Essay Ten. “Disability-Related Abstract”
Footnotes:
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Note on Essay Collection Publication Timing
I made the decision to publish Essays Four and Five of my Mad at/in Public Health Education Essay Collection in July because I am trying to return to occupational activities in August. While most of my recovery has involved sleeping, therapy, taking my medications, and otherwise healing, an important part of my healing — discussed closely with my mental health team — is speaking publicly and being heard. This essay collection is just one expression of that, in one area of my life that I am trying to recover from. I have intentionally decided to publish these essays at this time as a means of hopefully leaving this chapter of my life behind, returning to my work and advocacy, and moving onto brighter things. Essays Six through Ten will be written, finished, and published in August or September 2024 or sometime later this year.
Essay Collection Disclaimer:
All content expressed in this essay collection reflects my own views, perspectives and experiences and is not intended to reflect anyone else’s. Additionally, when discussing my own experiences, these essays solely reflect my own perceptions and memories of them.
