Contributions to Public Health Ethics

• I was one of the principal authors of the Public Health Code of Ethics adopted by the American Public Health Association and several other national level public health organizations.

• I developed a list of competencies and skills in public health ethics which contributed, in turn, to the development of core competencies for masters of public health degrees published by the Association of Schools of Public Health.

• I direct UNC's Program in Public Health Ethics. One component of that program is a certificate in PH ethics. I also developed a public access on-line series of lectures on public health ethics.

• I am a member of the Ethics Subcommittee of the Advisory Committee to the Director of the Centers for Disease and Control.

• I am a member of the Policy, Ethics, and Law Core of the Southeast Regional Center for Excellence for Emerging Infections and Biodefense (SERCEB).

Current projects in public health ethics

• With funds from the Greenwall Foundation, I am studying how the Epidemiology Section of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services identifies and addresses ethical issues in the context of public health emergencies such as hurricanes.
  

• I am seeking additional funding for projects to (1) build the capacity of public agencies and private institutions to respond ethically to public health emergencies, (2) develop online resources for public health ethics, and (3) studying non-Western concepts of public health ethics.
  

• Not all of my work in AIDS and ethics is academic. I am the president of a nonprofit organization called Africa Rising. We support grassroots African organizations rising to challenges facing their communities and continent by connecting them with donors who want to help. We also build relationships that go beyond financial donations between African organizations and individuals, churches, and companies in the West.
  

Selected publications related to public health ethics

Thomas JC. Ethical concerns in pandemic influenza preparation and responses. A white paper written for the Policy, Ethics, and Law Core of the Southeast Regional Center of Excellence for Emerging Infections and Biodefense, 2007.

Thomas JC. Public Health Ethics. In: Scutchfield FD, Keck CW (Eds.) Principles of Public Health Practice, 3rd Ed. (in press)

Thomas JC, Gaare R. Codes of Ethics in Public Health. In: The Encyclopedia of Public Health (in press).

Thomas JC. An agenda for public health ethics. J Public Health Management and Practice 2008 (in press).

Martinot A, Thomas JC, Thiermann A, Dasgupta N. Avian influenza prevention and control: A paradigm shift in pandemic influenza preparedness. Veterinary Record 2007;160:343-5.

Thomas JC, Desgupta N, Martinot A. Ethics in a pandemic: A survey of the state pandemic influenza plans. Am J Pubic Health 2007;97 Suppl 1:S26-3.

Thomas JC, Irwin D, Zuiker E, Millikan R, , Rockhill B. Genomics and the Public Health Code of Ethics. Am J Public Health 2005;95: 2139-43.

Thomas JC. Skills in the ethical practice of public health. J Public Health Management and Practice. 2005;11:260-1.

Brandenburg T, Guillory J, Melnick A, Thomas JC, Williams C. The public in public health ethics [letter]. Am J Public Health 2004;94;7.

Thomas JC. Teaching ethics in schools of public health. Public Health Reports 2003;118:279-286.

Thomas JC, Sage M, Dillenberg J, Guillory VJ. A code of ethics for public health. Am J Public Health 2002; 92:1057-9.

Thomas JC, Eng E, Earp JA, Ellis H. Trust and collaboration in the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. Public Health Reports 2001;116:540-7.