CDC and the CDC Foundation Recognize Dudley
for Contributions to Childhood Immunization
The Connecticut Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today announced that Dr. Robert Dudley, from the Community Health Center of New Britain, has been named CDC Childhood Immunization Champion for his outstanding efforts to promote childhood immunization in the city of New Britain and state of Connecticut.
Dr. Dudley has been an active partner in collaborating with the community as a pediatrician, school medical advisor, medical director, and professor. He has been a leader in the promotion of children’s health and immunizations and has focused on improving immunization delivery to children of all ages. Dr. Rob Dudley has embodied the 4 criteria that make a health care provider a true Immunization Champion: leadership, collaboration, innovation and advocacy. Dr. Dudley will receive the award at a ceremony at the Community Health Center of New Britain on April 19, 2016.
“My passion for maximizing immunization rates started with my residency in Philadelphia. It was the 90’s, and many vaccines were coming into widespread use: Hib, pneumococcal, and varicella. As a resident I saw some of the last ‘routine’ cases of bacterial meningitis, varicella encephalitis and Hib epiglottitis- before these conditions became fleetingly rare as immunization rates rose. The hospital where I trained also cared for infants who succumbed to measles- a completely preventable disease that parents had made a choice not to vaccinate against. The juxtaposition has made me a strong champion for immunization within my practice and the city where I serve as school medical advisor.”
Each year during National Infant Immunization Week, CDC and the CDC Foundation honor health professionals and community leaders from around the country with the CDC Childhood Immunization Champion awards. These awards acknowledge the outstanding efforts of those individuals who strive to ensure that children in their communities are fully immunized against 14 preventable diseases before the age of two.
CDC Childhood Immunization Champions were selected from a pool of health professionals, coalition members, community advocates, and other immunization leaders. State Immunization Programs coordinated the nomination process and submitted nominees to CDC. One winner was selected in each of the 34 participating states and the District of Columbia.
“Ensuring that every child is vaccinated on schedule is critical to protecting our children, schools, and communities from outbreaks of serious diseases,” said Dr. Amanda Cohn, a pediatrician at CDC and the Executive Secretary of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. “We could not achieve our goal of protecting children without those committed individuals who promote immunizations at the state and local levels.”
For profiles of other CDC Childhood Immunization Champion award winners, please visit http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/champions.
About National Infant Immunization Week
National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW) is an annual observance to highlight the importance of protecting infants from vaccine-preventable diseases and to celebrate the achievements of immunization programs in promoting healthy communities throughout the United States. Each year, during NIIW, communities across the U.S. celebrate the CDC Childhood Immunization Champions. These award recipients are being recognized for the important contributions they have made to public health through their work in childhood immunization.