03/17/2026
🏥 Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha played a critical role in exposing the and demonstrating the importance of public health advocacy:
💜After researchers from the Flint Water Study informed her that they had found dangerously high levels of lead in Flint residents’ homes, she began conducting her own research to examine the impact on children’s health.
💜Her findings showed that children’s blood lead levels doubled after the city switched its water source from the Detroit River to the Flint River in April 2014.
đź’śAt a press conference at , she publicly revealed these results and urged residents, especially families with children, to stop drinking the water. She also called for an end to the use of the Flint River as a water source and urged the city to issue a public health advisory.
đź’śDr. Hanna-Attisha has emphasized that pediatricians often witness the consequences of failed social policies through the health of their patients.
💜She argues that understanding a patient’s background, including their neighborhood, environment, and history, is essential to providing proper care.
Her advocacy helped bring national attention to the crisis and highlighted how and environmentalpolicy decisions can directly affect community health.
Learn more about Dr. Hanna-Attisha here!
https://info.umkc.edu/womenc/2018/03/13/mona-hanna-attisha-and-the-flint-water-crisis/
https://obamaoralhistory.columbia.edu/interviews/mona-hanna-attisha
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