Public Health SPOTlight Podcast

Most of us didn't end up exactly where we thought we would when we first stepped into public health. And if you've ever felt quietly guilty about that — like you've somehow veered off the path you were supposed to be on — this episode is for you.
Sujani gets personal in this one. She shares how she went from planning to be a dentist to stumbling into public health through an elective course and a John Donne poem that stopped her in her tracks. She talks about landing her dream job — and then building PH SPOT on the side because she couldn't ignore a problem she kept seeing. And she reflects on what it's meant to become a mother twice over, go on leave, and ask hard questions about what the next chapter of her career actually looks like.
The through line? None of it was the plan. And all of it was exactly right.
This episode is part of PH SPOT's 2026 theme — The Future-Ready Public Health Professional — and kicks off our Q1 focus on adaptability, transferable skills, and navigating a career that doesn't always go in a straight line.
In this episode:
Why Sujani's original plan had nothing to do with public health
The moment a John Donne poem changed everything
How PH SPOT was born from a mentoring problem
Why non-linear careers aren't a detour — they ARE the path
Three things every public health professional needs to remember when they feel off-track
A 5-minute reflection exercise to help you see how far you've actually come
🔗 Join PH SPOT+ : phspot.org/club🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter: phspot.org/signup

The public health workforce is evolving faster than ever — and careers in this field no longer follow a straight line. In this episode, we're sharing a special replay of our Q1 PH SPOT+ member panel, where three public health professionals joined moderator Meghan Haffey for a candid, wide-ranging conversation about what it really means to adapt to the future of work.
This panel is part of PH SPOT's 2026 programming theme — The Future-Ready Public Health Professional — and kicks off our Q1 focus on workforce trends, transferable skills, and navigating a field that's changing in real time.
The conversation covers what excites these professionals most about the future of public health, the biggest shifts they're seeing in the workforce right now, how they've personally navigated adaptability in their own careers, and what early and mid-career professionals should start doing differently today to future-proof their careers.

Meet the panelists:
Meghan Haffey, DrPH, MPH — Moderator, PH SPOT Mentor, Associate for Scientific and Medical Research at Knowesis Inc.
Marybec Griffin, PhD, MPH — Assistant Professor & MPH Program Director, Fairfield University
Nour Sharara, MPH — Strategy & Partnerships, Field Intelligence Inc.
Keshini Saggar, BDS, MBA, MPH — Communications & Project Lead, Harvard Medical School; Head of Marketing & Community Relations, Nucona Research

In this episode:
Why public health is becoming more interdisciplinary — and what that means for your career
How transferable skills open doors you never expected
What adaptability actually looks like in practice (beyond the buzzword)
The role of curiosity, relationship-building, and showing up online in building a future-ready career
Areas of public health that are ripe for innovation and change
🔗 Join PH SPOT+: phspot.org/club🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter: phspot.org/signup

Sujani is back at the mic after almost a year away — and in this episode, she's keeping it real. She shares what the past year actually looked like: a new role, a second baby, solo parenting stretches, sleep deprivation, and the hard decision to pause the podcast rather than do it poorly. She also reflects on why rest is not the same as giving up — and why she thinks you need to hear that too.
Then, Sujani looks ahead. She introduces PH SPOT's 2026 theme — the Future-Ready Public Health Professional — and walks through the four quarterly themes shaping this year's content and programming: adapting to the future of work, becoming a digital public health professional, building a portfolio career, and sustaining long-term impact.
Whether you've been here since the beginning or this is your very first episode, this is a great place to start.
In this episode:
Why Sujani stepped away — and what made her ready to come back
A shoutout to the PH SPOT team who kept things going
A listener story that reminded the team why this work matters
PH SPOT's 2026 theme: The Future-Ready Public Health Professional
A breakdown of the four quarterly themes and what's planned
How to join PH SPOT Plus (formerly the Public Health Career Club)
🔗 Subscribe to the newsletter: phspot.org/signup🔗 Join PH SPOT Plus: phspot.org/club

Tell us what you thought of this episode - send us a text!
Last week I talked about "Leadership Skills Every Public Health Professional Should Develop" and mentioned two episodes from 2020 where I sat down with two amazing guests to discuss leadership.
This week, I wanted to make sure you had a chance to listen to the second one of these episodes - with Anjum Sultana.
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In this episode, Sujani sits down with Anjum Sultana. Anjum is someone Sujani has known for a number of years and has interacted with via phone calls and messaging/email, but this was the first time they both "saw" each other (virtually), so it was a special conversation. Anjum’s advocacy and leadership work is also something that Sujani has been inspired by over the years.
The conversation with Anjum is not only jam-packed with inspiration and motivation to be a leader in public health but also weaves tangible first steps for all of us to take.
Public health needs many strong leaders to push agendas forward, and we hope that by sharing stories like that of Anjum's, you walk away feeling like you too can be a leader in public health.
You’ll Learn
How Anjum defines leadership
Whether she intentionally chose to become a leader in her space, or it naturally occurred
A bit about the young Anjum, her first memory of thinking that she could be a leader, and how her dad was an inspiration to her, which has resulted in the work she does in her community
Attributes of a good leader (skills to build on for anyone wanting to be a leader in their space), and skills Anjum wished she had gained early on
Things students can focus on specifically while in school to set themselves up to become a strong leader
Step-by-step how we can go from feeling passionate about a topic/issue/cause to taking incremental action that leads to change. 
Whether leadership only comes from a management/senior-level role (hint: no it doesn’t)
Whether leaders are born OR if leadership can be learned
Challenges Anjum faces as a leader in her space
A final example where Anjum showed that she is a leader in her space: she talks about her journey first authoring Canada’s First Feminist Recovery Plan.It is the first nationally-focused one in the country and possibly the world
She encourages the PH SPOT community to read it, make it your own, and reach out to her should you be interested in taking action

Support the show
Join The Public Health Career Club: A global membership community where public health professionals connect, learn, and support each other in building meaningful and impactful careers.
Go from feeling confused, alone and overwhelmed, to feeling confident and in control of your life and career!

Tell us what you thought of this episode - send us a text!
Last week I talked about "Leadership Skills Every Public Health Professional Should Develop" and mentioned two episodes from 2020 where I sat down with two amazing guests to discuss leadership.
This week, I wanted to make sure you had a chance to listen to the second one of these episodes - with Anjum Sultana.
--------
In this episode, Sujani sits down with Anjum Sultana. Anjum is someone Sujani has known for a number of years and has interacted with via phone calls and messaging/email, but this was the first time they both "saw" each other (virtually), so it was a special conversation. Anjum’s advocacy and leadership work is also something that Sujani has been inspired by over the years.
The conversation with Anjum is not only jam-packed with inspiration and motivation to be a leader in public health but also weaves tangible first steps for all of us to take.
Public health needs many strong leaders to push agendas forward, and we hope that by sharing stories like that of Anjum's, you walk away feeling like you too can be a leader in public health.
You’ll Learn
How Anjum defines leadership
Whether she intentionally chose to become a leader in her space, or it naturally occurred
A bit about the young Anjum, her first memory of thinking that she could be a leader, and how her dad was an inspiration to her, which has resulted in the work she does in her community
Attributes of a good leader (skills to build on for anyone wanting to be a leader in their space), and skills Anjum wished she had gained early on
Things students can focus on specifically while in school to set themselves up to become a strong leader
Step-by-step how we can go from feeling passionate about a topic/issue/cause to taking incremental action that leads to change. 
Whether leadership only comes from a management/senior-level role (hint: no it doesn’t)
Whether leaders are born OR if leadership can be learned
Challenges Anjum faces as a leader in her space
A final example where Anjum showed that she is a leader in her space: she talks about her journey first authoring Canada’s First Feminist Recovery Plan.It is the first nationally-focused one in the country and possibly the world
She encourages the PH SPOT community to read it, make it your own, and reach out to her should you be interested in taking action

Support the show
Join The Public Health Career Club: A global membership community where public health professionals connect, learn, and support each other in building meaningful and impactful careers.
Go from feeling confused, alone and overwhelmed, to feeling confident and in control of your life and career!