What does it take to lead a top-tier School of Public Health? For Dr. Francesca Beaudoin, the journey started in the chaos of the ER.

In this episode of Humans in Public Health, we sit down with Interim Dean Beaudoin to trace an incredible trajectory. She has experienced Brown from every possible angle: first as a medical resident, then a doctoral student, then as member of the faculty, a department chair and administrative leader.

Now she steps into the role of Interim Dean, prepared to propel the school forward with momentum. Host Megan Hall sits down with Dr. Beaudoin to discuss how 20 years in academia and on the medical frontlines—from treating acute trauma to staffing mobile opioid recovery units—prepared her to lead during a time of transition.

In this episode, host Megan Hall sits down with the co-directors of Brown University’s new AIM Lab, emergency physician Dara Kass and legal expert Liz Tobin-Tyler, to discuss the chaotic intersection of medicine and law three years after the Dobbs decision. As state abortion bans create a "chilling effect" that leaves clinicians paralyzed by legal fear, the AIM Lab is stepping in to provide a practical roadmap for emergency care and maternal health. Kass and Tobin-Tyler share how they are moving past the political noise to solve the public health crises on the ground, offering a harm reduction approach that protects both doctors and patients while training a new generation of advocates to value the lives of pregnant people in every state.

A quarter of young adults are turning to AI chatbots like ChatGPT for mental health advice, highlighting a massive shift in how people seek support. Dr. Ateev Mehrotra discusses his research and the urgent need to balance AI's capacity for providing accessible, cost-effective care with its potential to unwittingly cause harm.