Public health impact, grounded in a decade at the bedside.
I'm Stephanie Leonenko — a healthcare professional with 10+ years of clinical experience, now focused on population health, health policy, and program operations. I translate what I saw one patient at a time into systems that protect the health of whole communities.
From the bedside to the population level.
The best public health leaders never lose sight of the patient in the bed. I bring the frontline perspective that policy tables and program design often miss.
Ten years ago I put on scrubs for the first time as a CNA. The bedside taught me more about healthcare than any boardroom ever will — and I'm bringing all of it with me.
"Honey, can you tell me what any of that meant?" — the question a recently discharged patient asked me, again and again, once the door closed.
The patient who can't afford her meds. The family who doesn't understand discharge instructions. The chart that says "stable" when the person in the bed is anything but. These aren't edge cases — they're the everyday gaps the frontline sees, multiplied across entire communities.
I'm now moving into public and global health — the CDC, WHO, and the organizations that work upstream of the hospital. My aim is simple: help design the programs and policies that close those gaps before a patient ever reaches the bedside.
From the bedside to the population level.
Ten years of frontline care taught me where systems fail people. Public and global health is where I can help fix them at scale.
CNA, Med/Surg — South Nassau Communities Hospital
First shifts in scrubs. Delivered direct patient care on a busy medical-surgical unit and built the foundation in nursing, patient care, and documentation.
CNA, Medically Fragile Children — Providence Health & Services
Provided specialized care for medically fragile pediatric patients with complex needs, partnering closely with nursing staff and families.
CNA, Med/Surg → Emergency Department
Seven years with Northwell — from med/surg in Plainview to high-acuity emergency care in Huntington. Documented in Epic and saw firsthand where care coordination breaks down and where it holds.
Healthcare Operations Analyst — Leonenko Group
Stepped off the floor and into health-technology operations — evaluating EHR and clinical workflows, translating what happens at the bedside into technology and process decisions that actually work in care settings.
Toward public & global health
Moving upstream into public health — the CDC, WHO, and partner organizations — bringing what the bedside taught me to the programs and policies that protect whole populations.
A well-traveled path.
From Guyana to the Pacific — a career and a life that have crossed borders, coasts, and care settings.
Where I add value in public health.
Population & Community Health
Connecting clinical realities with community needs — outreach, health education, and closing the gaps between care and the people who need it most.
Health Technology & Informatics
Bringing a clinical viewpoint to EHR and health-tech decisions, making sure systems like Epic support how care is actually delivered, not the other way around.
Policy & Compliance
Turning regulation, safety, and public health standards into guidance people can actually follow — protecting communities and institutions alike.
The best public health leaders aren't the ones furthest from the patient. They're the ones who never forgot what it felt like to be in the room.
To the women who've spent years at the bedside and are wondering if your experience "counts" for public health and global health work — it does. It's exactly what those rooms are missing. I write about the gap between how health is planned and how it's actually lived.
Read the writing →The reasons behind the work.
Open to volunteering and to conversations with people building in these spaces.
Foundation.
Southern New Hampshire University
B.S., Healthcare Administration · 2023–2027
Let's build health that reaches everyone.
If you're working in public health, global health, or health policy — at CDC, WHO, a partner organization, or an NGO — I'd love to connect and learn from the work you're doing.