March 13, 2026

Alumna Elina Paul, MPH in Health Management and Policy ’19, has worked within Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s (CHOP) Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Department since graduation in 2019. First as an Infection Prevention Associate then an Infection Preventionist, and now an Infection Prevention Manager, a role she has been in since March 2025. To learn more about her career path and why Dornsife’s master’s in public health (MPH) was right for her, Elina shares some reflections.

Initially Elina’s position focused on data management and reporting. Now, in a manager role she leads a team that responds to high-consequence pathogens and vaccine-preventable diseases such a measles. She also leads quality and process improvement initiatives that strengthen patient safety and harm prevention across CHOP. An example of this is using evidence based policy and data to implement, reinforce, and sustain harm prevention efforts.

A large part of what drives Elina to do this work is the direct impact IPC professionals can have on patients. “I saw firsthand the critical role of infection prevention especially during the pandemic and with epidemiology and vaccine preventable disease management, an area I’ve long been passionate about,” she shares.

Elina leans on her multidisciplinary skillset to be successful in safeguarding patient safety. Though her degree focus was on Health Management and Policy, she combines those teachings with epidemiological methods. All students in the Dornsife MPH program learn introductory principles and methods of epidemiology which provide students with a basic epidemiologic skill set needed.

“I use both the policy and epidemiology sides of my training every day. In a hospital environment, strong policies and procedures are essential to safe operations, and epidemiology guides nearly every decision we make,” shares Elina. “The training I received at Dornsife continues to be deeply relevant to my work.”

Something that surprised Elina about the field of IPC is the range of safety considerations in a hospital setting. For example, the physical infrastructure at CHOP is something her team assesses. This includes monitoring how temperature and humidity influence medical equipment functionality and how room temperature and HVAC pressurization can impact certain pathogens.

Cross collaboration is central to Elina's role in IPC and to her broader practice of public health principles.

“There is significant overlap between public health and infection prevention, particularly during responses to vaccine preventable diseases or outbreaks. In these moments, we collaborate closely with departments of health to coordinate guidance, reporting, and hospital based response efforts—work that consistently reflects the foundations I built as a Dornsife student,” says Elina.

In addition to practical coursework, Elina valued the school’s expansive network. She completed her public health practical experiences at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) and CHOP. At PDPH she worked on vaccine policy and vaccine uptake initiatives for the city and at CHOP she worked within the Center for Injury Prevention Research. The school’s longstanding relationship with PDPH and CHOP, along with many other community organizations, helps students secure Co-op, Applied Practical Experience, and Integrative Learning Experience opportunities.

“I chose Dornsife because of its strong reputation and the extensive opportunities and partnerships it offers throughout Philadelphia. As a top public health program, it allowed me to take full advantage of those connections, including the opportunity to work with PDPH.”

Elina is eager to continue growing in her leadership role at CHOP, with a particular focus on developing her strategic thinking at an enterprise level. At the end of March, Elina is representing her department by presenting to a larger audience affiliated with the Children’s Hospital Association. She will continue to represent her department at the Children's Hospital Association Infection Prevention Director’s Forum conference in April. She has also recently become more involved with the public policy group within her local Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) chapter. Elina is committed to expanding her expertise throughout her career and sharing her story.

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