Shalon MauRene Irving
July 9, 1980 – January 28, 2017
Sandy Springs, Georgia
Shalon MauRene Irving, PhD, MPH, MS, CHES, an epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and lieutenant commander in the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, dedicated her life to understanding how structural racism, intersectionality, trauma, and violence influence health disparities over a lifetime. Indicative of her life’s work, Shalon’s bio on one of her social media pages says: “I see inequity wherever it exists, call it by name, and work to eliminate it. I vow to create a better earth!” She passed away unexpectedly on January 28, 2017, just three weeks after giving birth, calling national attention to one of the widest of all racial disparities in women’s health: disproportionately high rates of maternal mortality among Black women in the US.
During her career as a sociologist and public health leader, Shalon made valuable contributions to the fields of health equity and epidemiology, including her research on health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities, women’s health, elder abuse, and the consequences of intimate partner violence. Since Shalon’s untimely passing in 2017, her life and legacy have greatly contributed to the advancement of policies to prioritize the reduction of preventable maternal deaths in Black women, including ambitious and groundbreaking congressional legislation to address maternal health disparities.
Source: Health Affairs