Dr. Emily Wang '93

Dr. Wang received an AB in History of Medicine from Harvard University and has always been interested in healthcare. A large part of this interest stemmed from her father’s illness and eventual death while she was young. Dr. Wang said because of this experience, she “always felt inclined toward medicine.” She also took note of the excellent care her father received. “Access to healthcare is different across socioeconomic classes. The U.S. has two separate health care systems: one for people who aren’t incarcerated, and one for people behind bars.” Dr. Wang whole-heartedly believes that “prison should be a loss of freedom, but not dignity.” 

 

Nowhere has this been highlighted quite like her first-time visit to a Botswana maximum security prison. Reflecting upon her first visit, Dr. Wang remembers, “In the middle of that correctional facility was what appeared to be a correctional officer, sitting in the middle of a courtyard with a person who is incarcerated, with scissors, cutting his hair. People were walking in and out of the correctional facility with large bowls of food, in open air. There was music playing.” 

Dr. Wang then juxtaposes this memory with her time spent providing healthcare education at a women’s correctional facility in North Carolina. At this correctional facility, not only are your movements restricted but also your food and access to medical items such as menstrual products. For example, “After 12 tampons [incarcerated people] have to pay for them; new moms are denied breast pads.” 

 

What happens after release? Dr. Wang’s focus is not only on what happens in prison from a health standpoint but afterward. Many people receive treatment such as chemotherapy or insulin during their time in prison. However, after being released, they no longer have access to that care. There’s a lack of continuity and that raises the bigger question of how to transition care. In some states, a felony drug conviction can disqualify you from ever receiving food stamps. “Getting into an educational program to increase your opportunities or abilities to get a job is much harder. You then return to the same communities in which you were living before. It’s not like your circumstances have changed once you are released” notes Wang. Dr. Wang is working to combat this through the Transitions Clinic Network (TCN), which she and Dr. Shira Shavit co-founded and where she currently serves as Director of Research. 

TCN works to transform health systems to meet the needs of impacted communities better through: 

 

●Training, technical assistance, and capacity-building to support community-based primary care clinics to implement programs with a focus on improving the health and social determinants of health of individuals returning from incarceration; 

●Hiring and training formerly incarcerated individuals to work as community health workers (CHW) embedded into primary care teams to engage patients returning from incarceration and transform health systems from within; 

●Training health systems to implement patient- centered policies and organizational policies that support employment opportunities for CHWs with incarceration histories; 

●Collaboration with cross-sector stakeholders to promote healthcare access and equity; and 

●Community-led policy expertise and implementation support to strengthen initiatives aimed at enhancing health for populations impacted by the criminal legal system. 

Dr. Wang’s work and research with TCN and SEICHE inducted her into the MacArthur Fellows Program. While talking about her time at St. John’s, Dr. Wang mentioned how impactful history, the humanities, and her English classes were. They allowed her to explore new ideas and challenged preconceived perspectives. 

 

“Throughout our years at SJS, Emily earned the respect and admiration of everyone around her. Always thoughtful and kind, smart and hard-working, and fun and engaging, she was the person everyone wanted as their friend,” reflects classmate LIZZIE PANNILL FLETCHER ’93. “She distinguished herself and set an example for us all throughout our 12 years together. It was no surprise that she was the Head Prefect of our class. And it is no surprise that she has dedicated her life to serving others in ways that are thoughtful and meaningful, earning a MacArthur Fellowship for her important work and making our world a better place. Our class, our community, and our country are all better because of Emily Wang.”