Contact Information

Preventive Medicine and Biometrics: Faculty


Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics
4301 Jones Bridge Road
Bethesda, Maryland 20814-4799
Phone: (301) 295-0777
Email: robert.defraites@usuhs.edu

Robert F. DeFraites, MD, MPH

Assistant Professor
Division of Tropical Public Health

Profile

Robert F. DeFraites, MD, MPH is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, and earned his undergraduate and medical degrees from Tulane University. He served on active duty in the US Army Medical Department from 1980 thru 2011 when he retired as a Colonel (O6), Medical Corps. He completed residency training programs in Pediatrics in 1983 and General Preventive Medicine/ Public Health in 1989 at Madigan Army Medical Center, Tacoma WA. He earned a Master of Public Health degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health in 1988. His Army assignments as a general pediatrician included staff positions at Irwin Army Hospital, Fort Riley, KS, and 98th General Hospital in Nuremberg, Germany. Preventive Medicine assignments included the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, the Office of the Army Surgeon General, the Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (Army Public Health Command), and Headquarters, US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Fort Detrick, MD. He was appointed the initial Director, Army Preventive Medicine Proponency Office in 2000, and in 2007 he was named as first Director of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center in Silver Spring, MD. He concurrently served as the Consultant to the Army Surgeon General in Preventive Medicine from 2007-11. Military awards include the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the "A" designator for proficiency in Army Preventive Medicine, and the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Award for Excellence in Military Medicine. He is board certified in Pediatrics and Preventive Medicine, and possesses the Certificate of Knowledge in Tropical Medicine and Travelers' Health from the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Selected Recent Publications

Otto JL, Lipnick RJ, Sanchez JL, DeFraites RF, Barnett DJ. Preparing military installations for pandemic influenza through tabletop exercises. Military Medicine 175 (1):7-13, January 2010.

Hsu CE, Chambers WC, Herbold JR, Calcote JC, Ryczak RS, DeFraites RF. Towards shared situational awareness and actionable knowledge - an enhanced, human-Centered paradigm for public health information system design. Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Article 52, Volume 7, (1) Jan 2010.

Otto JL, Barnett DJ, Fisher C, Lipnick R, DeFraites RF. Department of Defense position on patient movement during influenza A (H1N1) pandemic: implications for actions now. Military Medicine 175 (3):138-9, March 2010.

Johns MC, Eick AA, Blazes DL, Lee S, Perdue CL, Lipnick R, Vest KG, Russell KL, DeFraites RF, Sanchez JL. Seasonal influenza vaccine and protection against pandemic (H1N1) 2009-associated illness among US military personnel. PLoS ONE 5(5): e10722.doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0010722, 19 May 2010.

Gaydos JC, Tomich N, Russell KL, Jordan NN, Aronson N, Roselle GA, Khabbaz RF, Batsel-Stewart T, Gould PL, Erdtmann R, DeFraites RF, Noah DL. A roundtable discussion on emerging infectious diseases-risks to US Service members in Afghanistan and Iraq. (Editorial). Military Medicine 175 (12): 937-8, December 2010.

DeFraites RF. The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center: enhancing the Military Health System's public health capabilities. BMC Public Health 11 (Suppl 2): S1, March 2011.

DeFraites RF and Richards EE. Assessing potentially hazardous environmental exposures among military populations: 2010 symposium and workshop summary and conclusions. Military Medicine 176 (7 Suppl): 17-21, July 2011.

Magill AL, Cersovsky S, DeFraites RF. Advising travelers with specific needs: special considerations for military deployments. In Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. CDC Health Information for International Travel 2012. New York; Oxford University Press, pp. 561-5, 2012.

Professional Activities

  • Member, American College of Preventive Medicine
  • Member, American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
  • Member, Association of Military Surgeons of the United States