Kara Odom Walker facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kara Odom Walker MD
Walker at TANF Awards of Excellence in 2018
Secretary of Delaware Department of Health and Social Services
In office February 6, 2017 – June 2020
Governor	John Carney
Personal details
Alma mater	University of Delaware, BS, 1999 Jefferson Medical College, MD, 2004 Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, MPH, 2003 University of California, Los Angeles, Fielding School of Public Health, MSHS, 2009
Previous Workplaces	University of California, San Francisco, 2010 – 2012 Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, 2012 – 2017
Current Workplace	Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children

Kara Odom Walker is a doctor and a leader in health policy. She works as the Chief Population Health Officer at Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children. In this role, she helps improve the health and well-being of children. She also leads Nemours' primary care network in the Delaware Valley. Dr. Walker is a family doctor who still sees patients.

From February 2017 to June 2020, Dr. Walker was the Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. Before that, she worked at the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). In 2018, she was chosen to be part of the National Academy of Medicine. This is a very important group of health experts.

Her School Journey

Kara Odom Walker went to high school in Bear, Delaware. She was the top student, or valedictorian, at Caravel Academy. She then went to the University of Delaware. In 1999, she earned her bachelor's degree in chemical engineering.

She continued her studies at Jefferson Medical College. There, she became a doctor, earning her Doctor of Medicine degree in 2004. While studying to be a doctor, she also earned another degree. She received a Master of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins University in 2003. This degree focused on health policy and how health systems are managed.

After medical school, Dr. Walker moved to California. She completed her training in family medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. She then became a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles. In 2009, she earned a Masters of Health Services Research there. During this time, she studied how hospital closures affected people in Los Angeles who did not have many resources.

Her Work and Impact

In 2010, Dr. Odom Walker became a professor at the University of California, San Francisco. She researched health differences among people. She also worked on how to give patients high-quality, organized care.

In 2012, she joined the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). This organization helps people make informed health decisions. She became the Deputy Chief Science Officer there in 2013. After five years at PCORI, she decided to work in public service.

On February 6, 2017, Dr. Odom Walker became the Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. She worked for Governor John Carney. As Secretary, she created plans to make sure patients' health was the main focus in Delaware's healthcare.

She also helped lead Delaware's response to the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. She paid special attention to older people and those who were more vulnerable. In March 2020, she warned that many young adults were testing positive for COVID-19. She urged everyone, including younger people, to be careful.

In June 2020, Dr. Odom Walker left her role as Delaware Health Secretary. She started a new job at Nemours Children's Health System. She became the Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer at their Washington branch.

Special Recognitions

• In 2018, she was chosen as a Fellow of the National Academy of Medicine. This is a great honor for health leaders.