My superpower is the ability to meet people where they are and communicate complex health situations into lay terms.
Leah Casanave
Supervisor, STD Prevention and Control Program
Douglas County Health DepartmentDr. Leah Casanave is an epidemiologist at Douglas County Health Department in Omaha, Neb., and is shifting the narrative on infectious diseases and creating space for open conversations on sexual health and safety practices. As a public health practitioner, Leah strives to use innovative evidence-based solutions when addressing priority health issues and currently leads and manages the STD Prevention and Control Program. She developed a game plan and distribution plan with their Federally Qualified Health Clinic and worked to obtain grant dollars for a future HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) distribution program for uninsured and otherwise non-mainstream clients. She has created and launched a Take Home Test Kit for college students through college counselors that contains materials and instructions for urine specimen collection at home to detect STDs, and developed a small pilot project for gonorrhea (GC) antibiotic susceptibility testing.
Leah holds a DrPH and an MPH in epidemiology from the University of Kentucky College of Public Health.