John Meurer MD MBA

Download Dr. Meurer's CV

“The greatest challenge as the director of the Institute for Health & Equity is that there isn't enough time for all the exciting opportunities.”
- John Meurer

Dr. John Meurer has served as the director of the Institute for Health & Equity since 2011. In his role, he enjoys cultivating engagement and collegiality as well as supporting innovative research and excellence in education. Under his leadership, the Institute for Health & Equity continues to develop talented leaders, faculty, staff and students with a vast array of research and education experience. During his 23 years at MCW, Dr. Meurer has served on advisory boards of the Children’s Hospital and Health System in health education, community services, and advocacy.

My role as Director of the Institute for Health & Equity is a natural progression of my work and interest in public health and academic management. My mother was a nurse who instilled in us a commitment to altruism and service. By the time I was in high school, I knew I wanted to be a pediatrician in public health to serve children and families and help populations of vulnerable kids. Now I’m living my dream!

Through his research at MCW, Dr. Meurer continues to transform the field of Public Health and Public Health Policy. He has been awarded more than $28 million in grants as a principal investigator of community-engagement, health services, and population health research. Through community-engaged work, the Fight Asthma Milwaukee Allies coalition, directed by Dr. Meurer, contributed to a 50% reduction in asthma admissions at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin over a decade.

Currently, Dr. Meurer co-chairs the Cancer Center Community Advisory Board which helps address cancer disparities in southeast Wisconsin through authentic community engagement in research in cancer prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment and survivorship. He serves on the advisory boards of the MCW Cardiovascular Center (CVC) and Community Engagement Core (CEC). Outside MCW, Dr. Meurer also serves on advisory boards of the Children’s Health System Community Services and Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative. In honor of his community service, Dr. Meurer received the MCW President’s community engagement award in 2017.

As a pediatrician and health systems and policy management educator, Dr. Meurer is committed to training future physicians, scientists, and public health practitioners. Along with several colleagues, he co-directs the Primary Care Research Fellowship, a program that offers opportunities for inter-professional learning and research to explore new models of team-based care delivery. He guides and mentors students as the co-director of the Health Systems Management and Policy Pathway for medical and pharmacy students, a course created to help students understand health policy and the business and economics of medicine. Dr. Meurer also directs the Population Health Management and Policy courses for MPH students. In total, during his two decades with MCW, Dr. Meurer has mentored and advised more than 180 faculty, residents, and students. He has been awarded "Outstanding Teacher" six times, a student/peer nominated award for excellent teaching services given annually.

Dr. Meurer loves helping children, families, and the Milwaukee community to be healthy and well. He has practiced at Downtown Health Center, now Children’s Medical Group-Midtown Center, since 1994. During his tenure, he served as Chief of General Pediatrics and Medical Director. He has been selected as a Best Doctor in America for 10 years in a row.

He has published more than 60 chapters and articles in journals such as JAMA Pediatrics¹ and American Journal of Preventive Medicine². As part of his dedication to diversity and inclusion in the workplace, Dr. Meurer has lead several initiatives to foster collaboration across different disciplines, institutions, and communities including initiatives with the Clinical and Translational Science Institute.  

Dr. Meurer earned his Medical Degree at the University Wisconsin - Madison and his Masters of Business Administration at Northwestern University. He is married to Linda Meurer, MD, MPH, a distinguished Family and Community Medicine educator at MCW. He is also a proud dad of 3 adventurous and successful children.

Honors and Awards

• Best Doctors in America (8 years in a row)

• MCW Outstanding Graduate Education Award

• MCW Faculty Service Award

Education

• Marquette University (BS)

• UW Madison (MD)

• Baylor College of Medicine (Pediatrics Residency)

• Voluntary Hospitals of America (Policy Fellowship)

• MCW AHW grant 2017-22 for Research in Early Child Development to Improve Resiliency and Equity (REDIRECT)
• 4 MCW HWPP grants to improve early child development in 5 counties