Staff Bio
Laura Chanchien Parajón, MD, MPH, is the acting director of CDC’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).
Role at CDC
Dr. Chanchien Parajón leads an executive team that sets the strategic direction for the center’s portfolio, which focuses on preventing chronic disease and promoting health through data access, health interventions, screening support, and cost-effectiveness measurement.
Previous experience
Dr. Chanchien Parajón was previously the principal deputy director for NCCDPHP, serving as the chief scientific and program advisor to the director and other senior staff across the center.
Dr. Chanchien Parajón has over 30 years of public health experience leading efforts to translate epidemiologic data into actionable strategies,
streamlining operations to maximize health impact, and ensuring the effectiveness and efficiency of public health programs through data-driven decision making. She previously served at the New Mexico Department of Health as deputy secretary of health and state health officer, where she managed the department's Epidemiology Response Division, Public Health Programs Division, and Scientific Laboratory Division and served as the acting state epidemiologist.
She was also an associate professor in the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center's Department of Family and Community Medicine, with a secondary appointment at the College of Population Health.
For nearly two decades, Dr. Chanchien Parajón worked as medical director and cofounder of AMOS Health and Hope in Managua, Nicaragua, which made a tangible impact on health care delivery systems, particularly in underserved communities.
Education
Dr. Chanchien Parajón earned a Master of Public Health degree and Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of New Mexico. She is board-certified in family medicine, and she is the lead author on scholarly publications across a broad range of fields. Her long list of professional honors includes, most recently, an Excellence in Leadership and Community Service award from the New Mexico Department of Health (2022).