
Dr. Madeline Wilson, a dedicated member of the Yale community since 1999 and Yale Health since 2006, has recently taken on the role of chief campus health officer, heading the Campus Health Office. Wilson’s leadership was instrumental during the COVID-19 pandemic, and she continues to shape the health landscape at Yale. The Campus Health Office’s mission is to develop and maintain programs that promote the health and well-being of community members. Wilson and her team aim to keep the community informed, aware and prepared for public health challenges as well as everyday health risks.
YourYale recently spoke with Wilson about her role and the work she is dedicated to.
How would you describe your role and what it entails?
I have a few roles, as many of us at Yale do. The one that’s most visible is as chief campus health officer, often because I send out campus-wide messages. But I’m also the chief quality officer at Yale Health responsible for population health and a member of the executive leadership team. I have spent most of my career as a primary care doctor, and I still see patients who need same-day appointments.
In my most recent role, I lead the Yale Campus Health program, which was announced in January 2023 and is a product of our experience with the COVID-19 pandemic. We wanted to maintain the spirit of regular public health communication and work across silos to make sure that routine prevention is as much a part of the work we do as emergency preparedness. Our response to COVID-19 resulted in this amazing pop-up public-health infrastructure, and we didn’t want to lose all of that work that took place. The Campus Health program is based at Yale Health, but I also have a relationship to the Provost’s Office through Vice Provost for Health Affairs and Academic Integrity Stephanie Spangler who championed the creation of the Campus Health Office.
One of our biggest projects, Health On Track, is an important deliverable of the Campus Health Program. It is a substantial new enterprise system that tracks health requirements (vaccines, tests, examinations) for employees and students, some 35,000 people. Health On Track has been up and running for a year.
Why did you choose your particular career path?
I grew up outside of Worcester, Massachusetts, where my mom was a teacher, and my father was an attorney who handled trusts and estates in a small firm where he cared deeply about his clients’ families. I was always excited by the idea of being part of something bigger than myself. After I finished college, I went into the Peace Corps. I was in Liberia from 1981 to 1983 and while there, I was trying to decide if I would pursue public health or medicine. I loved public health and that is the population piece of my current work. But I thought I would have more options if I became a doctor and went to medical school when I returned.
It’s interesting that I’ve rotated back to the opportunity to think on a public health level. I like the link between taking care of people and thinking beyond the one-on-one interaction. Whether it’s the Yale Health population, or a larger population, it has always driven me to these administrative roles.
People have said to me, “Do you really like doing that work?” My response is always, “Yes!” I can be more creative and have a bigger impact by thinking about why we’re doing what we’re doing and how we can make it better.
How does your role relate to Yale staff?
Campus Health has four areas of high-level deliverables. One is communication. Another is prevention. The Flu and COVID Vaccine Program, based here at Yale Health, serves the community and is owned by Campus Health as well as the Health On Track system. Health On Track is now something of a household name to students and employees who have health requirements, and we are trying to make it easier for both groups to come into compliance. For a system that is only a year old, we’re pretty happy with results so far.
There is also the preparedness work that we’re doing both internally at Yale Health and externally on a campus level so we are helping to improve university readiness for public health risks or disease outbreaks that may arise.
The fourth area is Employee Health, which reports to me. Dr. Michael Bell joined us earlier this month as the associate chief campus and occupational health officer and brings a refreshed vision around occupational health — not just taking care of those with work-related injuries but partnering closely with Environmental Health and Safety, Human Resources, and others across campus to think about prevention. How do we support employees in getting back to work effectively, and how do we keep their overall wellbeing high on the radar? This is critical for employees to fulfill their missions.
What challenges do you face in your role?
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the incredible complexity of the work that we’re trying to do, particularly with Health On Track. It sits between several other large enterprise systems like Workday, Workday Learning, Banner and the others it interfaces with. We have a very large group of stakeholders, and we’re trying to do the best work for all Yale students, faculty, and staff. It will take time, and we are in the early days.
Starting a new university-level program like Campus Health is challenging and doesn’t happen that often. It’s been challenging to savor incremental progress and to find the small wins — and not focus on what’s not perfect.
What are you most proud of in your work?
I’m really proud of how I’ve taken care of people who work at Yale both as a physician and in my current roles. I’m also proud of the way I’ve tried to lead teams that I’m a member of. I’m not afraid to say I’m not sure how to do something, and I sincerely want everybody’s input. I think that I’ve been able to create an environment where people feel motivated to work on projects that are part of missions that we share. I’m also proud of what our large public health team accomplished during the pandemic.