Diane J. Young

Dr. Diane J. Young is a public health scholar, executive, and practitioner whose work examines the systems, policies, and workforce structures that shape maternal and infant health outcomes in the United States. Her research focuses on the professionalization, regulatory oversight, and integration of perinatal doulas within public health and clinical care systems, with particular attention to equity, quality, and statewide implementation frameworks. Dr. Young’s scholarship applies implementation science, deimplementation science, and health services research to advance sustainable models of care that improve outcomes for birthing people, families, and communities.

As an Division Director at the Prince George’s County Health Department, Dr. Young leads Family Health Services, a large and multidisciplinary division that spans maternal and child health, reproductive health, chronic disease, HIV and STI services, immunizations, WIC, tuberculosis control, and dental health. Her leadership emphasizes modernizing public health infrastructure, strengthening systems of care, and aligning programs with Public Health 3.0 principles. She oversees strategic planning, performance management, workforce development, and the implementation of policy and practice innovations designed to advance population health.

Dr. Young’s current work centers on three interconnected areas: 

1. Advancing the science and policy of doula professionalization, including credentialing, regulation, reimbursement, and integration into maternal health ecosystems.

2. Applying implementation and deimplementation frameworks to redesign public health programs and clinical pathways, particularly those focused on maternal morbidity, postpartum hypertension, and perinatal inequities.

3. Building public health workforce capacity through evidence-based leadership development, competency frameworks, and system-level strategies that improve organizational effectiveness and community impact.

Across her academic and practice portfolios, Dr. Young integrates methods and concepts from epidemiology, implementation science, organizational theory, and community health practice. Her overarching goal is to reduce preventable maternal morbidity and mortality, eliminate racial and geographic inequities in perinatal care, and strengthen the public health workforce responsible for delivering essential services.

Dr. Diane J. Young teaches Applied Public Health Methods in the DrPH program at the Milken Institute School of Public Health, where she guides emerging public health leaders in program planning, implementation, and evaluation. She is committed to preparing students to translate scientific evidence into policy and practice and to lead systems-level change across diverse public health settings.