Brewing Better Health: How data shapes public health

With another cup of Turkish coffee poured, the Brewing Better Health series continues, this time turning to a conversation about data, trust and how people make sense of changing information.

In Episode 5 of Brewing Better Health, Matt Strickland, Ph.D., joins Dean Muge Akpinar-Elci, M.D., MPH, to talk about how data, communication and evolving evidence shape the way people understand health and make decisions.

Strickland is a professor and chair of the Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Environmental Health at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Public Health. He studies how environmental exposures, such as air pollution and wildfire smoke, affect population health. That research often relies on large data sets, tracking outcomes like asthma, cardiovascular health and emergency department visits across entire communities.

But, as he explains, the work is never just about numbers.

“We are so used to working with big data sets, we can forget that those entries in the data sets are people,” Strickland said. “These are families.”

That perspective took shape early in his career while working with a birth defects surveillance system. Listening to families helped him see that public health data is not just about analysis. It is about answering real questions, helping people understand what lies ahead and making information useful in their daily lives.

“We are so used to working with big data sets, we can forget that those entries in the data sets are people,” Strickland said. “These are families.”

As they continue talking, Akpinar-Elci and Strickland reflect on how this work connects to decision-making. Much of the research contributes to the evidence used to set air quality standards under the Clean Air Act, helping identify which pollutants pose the greatest risk and where action can make the most difference.

In Nevada and across the western United States, that focus increasingly includes wildfire smoke, dust and other environmental challenges shaped by climate and geography. While the health risks tied to air pollution may seem small at the individual level, Strickland explains that they look very different across a population.

“When everybody is breathing air, those tiny little increases in risk add up day after day,” he said.

As the conversation turns to trust, Akpinar-Elci raises a challenge many in public health are facing right now: how to communicate science as it changes.

“Science is constantly changing right now,” she says. “But when the message is not connected, that creates not trusting the results.”

Strickland sees that shift as well.

“Maybe part of the loss of trust in science is our fault as scientists,” he said. “People often have to rely on authority because they don’t always have the tools to evaluate the information themselves, and who people trust has changed over time.”

With so many voices and perspectives, knowing who to trust is not always straightforward. For both, the challenge is not just producing good science, but helping people understand how and why that science evolves over time.

Even with those challenges, Strickland remains optimistic. Looking at long-term trends, he notes that air quality in the United States has improved significantly over time, even as new issues like wildfire smoke continue to emerge.

For him, progress in public health is not about quick wins, but steady, long-term commitment.

“You have to kind of focus on the long game,” he said.

Brewing Better Health features faculty and public health leaders from the University of Nevada, Reno School of Public Health and beyond. Each episode pairs thoughtful conversation with the tradition of Turkish coffee, emphasizing connection, listening and shared understanding.

Watch Episode 5 of Brewing Better Health featuring Matt Strickland, Ph.D., on YouTube or listen on Spotify.