Thomas Dobbs

Former Health Commissioner, State of Mississippi

Dr. Dobbs is the current Dean of the John D. Bower School of Population Health and a Professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at UMMC. Prior to this role he served as the State Health Officer for Mississippi, directing among many other things the state's COVID-19 pandemic response. His career has been situated at the crossroads of patient care and public health. As an infectious diseases physician, he has spent the majority of his clinical hours working with under-resourced populations through the Mississippi State Department of Health and community health centers, with a focus on those living with HIV. He is very familiar with stigma and the adverse impacts of the social determinants of health and how they can undermine full opportunities for health and prosperity. He has worked many years in Mississippi as a physician, advocate and leader. Dr. Dobbs has been actively involved in the use of technology to treat patients remotely, especially those impacted by tuberculosis, with the Mississippi State Department of Health and the Southeastern National Tuberculosis Center at the University of Florida. He readily appreciates the promise of novel approaches to deliver healthcare and opportunities for health through technological innovation as a way to alleviate some of the adverse effects of negative social determinants of health.