image: Andreea Creanga, MD, PhD, appointed new Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Credit: University of Maryland School of Medicine
University of Maryland School of Medicine Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced today that Andreea Creanga, MD, PhD, a distinguished and internationally recognized leader in maternal and perinatal health, has been appointed the new Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health. She will also be installed as the Simon and Bessie Grollman Distinguished Professor. Her appointment is effective December 2025.
The Department of Epidemiology and Public Health houses seven divisions and a combined 11 programs and research centers that aim to improve population health outcomes. It has consistently ranked among the top departments of its kind at public medical schools and within the top 10 across all medical schools over the past 16 years.
Dr. Creanga currently serves as a Professor and Associate Director of the International Center for Maternal and Newborn Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her research focuses on the implementation and evaluation of perinatal quality and safety interventions both in the U.S. and internationally, with an emphasis on measurement innovation and data science.
In her new role as Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, she will oversee a department of 58 primary faculty, 57 staff, and 10 post docs/graduate students. Specifically, she will work to advance several major initiatives within the department and in collaboration with the university, including a focus on bioinformatics and data science, the creation of a new division in maternal health, implementation of novel interventions at the intersection between clinical medicine and public health, and a planned expansion of the Master in Public Health program.
In addition to her role as Department Chair of Epidemiology & Public Health, she will hold a secondary appointment in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, working with OB-GYN faculty to advance women’s health.
Improving Maternal Health Outcomes
Dr. Creanga’s work has significantly advanced the field of maternal and perinatal health with research supported by more than $40 million in grants from federal agencies such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), as well as the World Health Organization and the Gates Foundation.
She leads the Maryland Maternal Health Innovation Program (MDMOM), a $15.8 million HRSA-funded program that drives innovation in data collection, quality improvement, workforce development, and community engagement across the 32 birthing hospitals in Maryland. Through this program, her team works to develop, implement and evaluate statewide initiatives aiming to eliminate preventable maternal deaths and severe maternal morbidity in the state of Maryland.
Nationally, Dr. Creanga serves as Principal Investigator of the Maternal Health Data Innovation and Coordination Hub, a national resource that supports 12 NIH-funded Maternal Health Research Centers of Excellence. The Hub’s mission is to develop standardized tools, training programs, and data science resources to strengthen maternal health research and foster collaboration as part of the NIH IMPROVE initiative.
Before joining Johns Hopkins in 2016, she served as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where she later worked to advance maternal and infant health through surveillance and research. While at the CDC, she also earned the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in 2013.
At Johns Hopkins, Dr. Creanga coordinated the two-year Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) program in Health Systems from 2016 to 2021, taught graduate-level courses, and provided mentorship to more than 40 graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior faculty. She has also earned the Excellence in Teaching award every year since 2018 for one of her courses. Her extensive academic experience reflects a deep commitment to education and to cultivating the next generation of leaders in medicine and public health.
“Dr. Creanga is a visionary physician-scientist whose groundbreaking work in maternal and perinatal health has transformed care delivery and outcomes both nationally and globally,” said Dean Gladwin who is also the Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean. “Her leadership in data-driven public health innovation and her deep commitment to health equity make her uniquely suited to guide the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health into its next era of excellence. We are proud to welcome her to the School of Medicine and look forward to the transformative impact she will have on our research, education, and community engagement missions.”
Transition of Leadership
Dr. Creanga will succeed Anthony D. Harris, MD, MPH, who has served as Acting Chair of the department since August 2024. An esteemed infectious disease physician and epidemiologist, Dr. Harris will continue to serve in the department as the Division Head of Genomic Epidemiology & Clinical Outcomes.
During his leadership, Dr. Harris advanced efforts to successfully gain alternative funding sources during the current challenging times, helping the department win a number of contracts and industry sponsored awards. In addition, he helped foster leadership changes in several new divisions. Enrollment in the MPH program also increased during his tenure.
Dr. Harris assumed the role following the decision of Jay Magaziner, PhD, MSHyg, to step down from his Chair position after 17 years. Dr. Magaziner had made it his mission to expand the department to encompass not only epidemiology, biostatistics, and gerontology, but also to include infection control and health care outcomes research. Dr. Magaziner was also instrumental in updating the department’s name and identity to the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health (formerly Preventive Medicine) and renaming the Division of Genomic Epidemiology and Clinical Outcomes (formerly Health Care Outcomes).
“I am extremely grateful to Dr. Harris and Dr. Magaziner for their transformational leadership,” said Dean Gladwin. “They have both made pivotal contributions in advancing the reach of the department, mentoring the next generation of scholars, and cultivating a collaborative academic environment. I am extremely honored that they continue to serve our school and elevate our research mission.”
Honors and Recognition
Throughout her career, Dr. Creanga has made significant research contributions to the field of maternal health with more than 130 peer-reviewed articles published in high-impact journals such as the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, JAMA, NEJM, and Obstetrics & Gynecology. She has extensively studied maternal mortality and severe morbidity in the U.S., highlighting the importance of state-based reviews and clinical audits to understand and prevent future adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. She uses implementation science to translate the insights gained from data and research into practical, real-world solutions.
Dr. Creanga contributes her expertise nationally and internationally. She is a member of the World Health Organization’s Maternal Mortality Estimation Technical Working Group and the United Nations’ Stillbirth Estimation Group, and co-editor of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Reproductive Health.
“Joining the University of Maryland is a true honor,” said Dr. Creanga. “I am excited for the opportunity to lead the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the School of Medicine. The Department has a proud history of advancing research, education, and community engagement, and I am committed to supporting its continued growth and impact in Maryland and beyond.”
Dr. Creanga earned her medical degree from the Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest, Romania and her PhD from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
About the University of Maryland School of Medicine
The University of Maryland School of Medicine, established in 1807 as the first public medical school in the U.S., continues today as one of the fastest growing, top-tier biomedical research enterprises in the world. The School has nearly $500 million total research funding, 46 departments, centers, and institutes, more than 2,200 student trainees and over 3,000 faculty members, including notable members of the National Academy of Medicine. As the largest public medical school in the DC/MD/VA region, faculty-physicians are working to help patients manage chronic diseases like obesity, cancer, heart disease and addiction, while also working on cutting-edge research to address the most critical generational health challenges. In 2024, the School ranked #12 among public medical schools and #27 among all medical schools for R&D expenditures by the National Science Foundation. With a $1.3 billion total operating budget, the School partners with the University of Maryland Medical Center to serve nearly 2 million patients annually. The School's global reach extends around the world with research and treatment facilities in 33 countries. In Maryland, the School of Medicine is spearheading new initiatives in AI and health computing and partnering with the University of Maryland BioPark to develop new medical technologies and bioengineering ventures. For more information, visit medschool.umaryland.edu.