Abstract
Sigrid Elaine Grande Deeds, who served as the 29th President of the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) in 1978-1979, died of Parkinson’s disease at the age of 88 years on February 12, 2011. Born in Jamestown, North Dakota, on November 16, 1923, Dr. Deeds graduated from the University of Chicago in 1944 with a major in political science. Two decades later, she earned a Master of Public Health degree in health education from the University of California, Berkeley, and in 1977 a Doctor of Public Health degree in health services administration from the University of Pittsburgh.
“Sig,” as she was called, began her career in Contra Costa, California, first as the executive director in the Voluntary Bureau, and later as executive director, of Planned Parenthood. She became chief of health education for Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County Health Department and was an adjunct professor of public health practice at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. In Western Pennsylvania, her theory, science, and skill sets of health education were applied masterfully in creating and organizing community groups for action. She used the tools and skills of health education to promote social justice and social policy—demonstrating that Sigrid Deeds was a genuine, influential, and effective health educator.
In the mid-1970s, Dr. Deeds joined the faculty of the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health (now the Bloomberg School of Public Health). During this time, with National Institutes of Health (NIH) support, the rigors of clinical trial research methods were brought to the health education field. These methods enabled health education scholars and scientists to show that educational interventions improved a variety of patient outcomes. The demonstrated utility of patient education intervention, whose impact could be measured and quantified, became a component of medical care. Her work in particular was noticed by the NIH, and she was invited to sit on a variety of NIH task forces, scientific review panels, working groups, and coordinating councils.
Dr. Deeds subsequently joined the American Red Cross as director of education and training and brought education policy changes to this large organization. During the 1980s and 1990s, she held academic rank at the schools of public health at four major U.S. universities and at the Centre of Health Promotion and Cancer Prevention Research at the University of Queensland, Australia. She advised a generation of students in public health education and the behavioral sciences. Simultaneously, she also served as the regional director of Member Health Education at the Kaiser Permanente Medical System of Southern California.
With her adroit leadership, SOPHE was reorganized to facilitate improved relationships between its component chapters and the national office. She also contributed extensively to the Role Delineation Project, which laid the foundation for the credentialing of Certified Health Education Specialists (CHES) and thereafter wrote the first textbook to help health educators prepare for the CHES certifying exams. Her SOPHE activities, awards, and honors include being SOPHE President, Editor of Health Education Monographs, National Legislative Committee chair, Distinguished Fellow (SOPHE’s highest honor), and Founder of the SOPHE Three Rivers Chapter.
Dr. Deeds was also active in the American Public Health Association (APHA), serving on the Action Board, secretary of the Public Health Education Section, and chair of the Annual Meeting Section Program Committee and Community Health Education Project Technical Assistance Committee. In 1992, she received the Distinguished Career Award from the APHA Public Health Education and Health Promotion Section.
This grand lady was a champion of social justice, meaningful social change, advocated for others in need, was a role model for women, had a telegenic personality, and brought a special brand of wit, elegance, and style to the profession. While many of us will miss our colleague and dear friend, Sigrid’s beauty and the lessons she taught remain.