Erik L. Carlton, DrPH, MS, FACHE, CPH

Innovative and accomplished academic leader specializing in global health and health administration with an emphasis on strategic and transformational leadership and building high-performing organizational cultures.

Associate Professor

Organization:

West Virginia University School of Public Health

Department:

Health Policy, Management, and Leadership

Classification:

Faculty

• DrPH, University of Kentucky
• MS, University of Kentucky
• BA, California State University - East Bay
• EC, Harvard University

• Carlton, E.L. & Holsinger, J.W. (2025). Leading Health Organizations: Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
• Holsinger, J.W. & Carlton, E.L. (2018). Leadership for Public Health: Theory and Practice. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
• Holsinger, J.W., Carlton, E.L., & Jadhav, E. (Eds.) (2015). Leading people, managing organizations: Contemporary public health leadership. Lausanne, Switzerland: Frontiers in Public Health.
• Carlton, E.L. (2008). Defining Factors of Successful University-Based Community Initiatives: Theory and Practice. Omniscriptum Publishing Group.
• Peer-Reviewed Publications
• Isehunwa, O., Kedia, S., Schmidt, M., Entwhistle, C., Carlton, E., & Dillon, P. (2025). A qualitative study on barriers and facilitators to effective collaboration between local health departments and hospitals. Community Health Equity Research and Policy.
• Isehunwa, O., Dobalian, A., Ahn, S., Relyea, G., & Carlton, E. (2021). Local Health Department and Hospital Collaboration around Community Health Needs Assessment to Improve Health Outcomes. Family & Community Health, 44(3), 136-145. doi: 10.1097/FCH.0000000000000280.
• Kim, H., Mahmood, A., Carlton, E.L., Goldsmith, J., Chang, C., & Bhuyan, S. (2020). Access to personal health records and screening for breast and cervical cancer among women with a family history of cancer. Journal of Cancer Education, 35, 1128-1134.
• Carlton, E.L. & Singh, S.M. (2018). Joint Community Health Needs Assessments Pave the Path for Local Health Departments’ Involvement in Non-Profit Hospitals’ Implementation Planning Activities. American Journal of Public Health, 108(5), 683-688.
• Kim, H., Yu, X., Carlton, E.L., Powell, M.P., Chang, C., & Ahn, S. (2018). Preschoolers’ use of mental health services: An application of the Behavioral Model for Vulnerable Populations. Education and Health, 36(4), 117-126.
• Holsinger, J.W. & Carlton, E.L. (2018). Leadership for Public Health: Theory and Practice. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
• Isehunwa, O., Chang, C., Jiang, J., Wang, Y., Kedia, S., Carlton, E., & Bhuyan, S. (2017). Access to employee wellness program and use of preventative care services among working adults in the United States. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 53(6), 854-865.
• Jackson, B., Guttierez, M.L., Relyea, G., Carlton, E.L., Ahn, S., Nault, J., Binkley, B., & Bailey, J. (2017). Unmet primary care needs in diabetes patients with multimorbidity in a medically underserved area. Health Services Research and Managerial Epidemiology, 4(1), 1-9.
• Barnes, P., Erwin, P.C., Moonesignhe, R., Brooks, A., Carlton, E.L., & Behringer, B. (2017). Functional characteristics of health coalitions in local public health systems: A case study exploring the function of county health councils in Tennessee. Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, 23(4), 404-409.
• Hooker, E.A., Caron, R.M., Hewitt, A.M., Carmalt, J.H., Landry, A.Y., & Carlton, E.L. (2017). Defining population health: Leveraging advisory board members’ perspective to identify health administration curriculum content. Journal of Health Administration Education, 34(1), 5-20. [Impact factor: 0.15]
• Singh, S. & Carlton, E.L. (2017). Exploring the link between completion of accreditation prerequisites and local health departments’ decision to collaborate with tax-exempt hospitals around the community health assessment. Journal of Public Health Management & Practice, 23(2), 138-147. [Impact factor: 1.510]
• Singh, S. & Carlton, E.L. (2016). Local health departments’ involvement in hospitals’ implementation plans. Frontiers in Public Health Systems and Services Research, 5(4), 34-39.
• Carlton, E.L., Holsinger, J.W., & Anunobi, N. (2016). Physician engagement with health information technology: Implications for practice and professionalism. International Journal of Computers in Clinical Practice, 1(2), 51-73.
• Bhuyan, S.S., Wang, Y., Bhatt, J., Dismuke, S.E., Carlton, E.L., Gentry, D., LaGrange, C., & Chang, C. (2016). Paid sick leave is associated with fewer emergency department visits among U.S. private sector working adults. American Journal of Emergency Medicine, 34(5), 784-789.
• Holsinger, J.W., Carlton, E.L., & Jadhav, E. (Eds.) (2015). Leading people, managing organizations: Contemporary public health leadership. Lausanne, Switzerland: Frontiers in Public Health.
• Holsinger, J., Carlton, E.L., & Jadhav, E. (2015). Editorial – Leading people, managing organizations: Contemporary public health leadership. Frontiers in Public Health, 3:268, 1-3.
• Carlton, E.L., Powell, M.P., Dismuke, S.E., & Levy, M. (2015). Our future's brightest: Developing interdisciplinary competencies through an interprofessional graduate student case competition. Journal of Health Administration Education, 32(1), 47-57.
• Bhuyan, S.S., Chandak, A.N., Smith, P., Carlton, E.L., Duncan, K.A., & Gentry, D. (2015). Integration of public health and primary care: A systematic review of the current literature in primary care physician mediated childhood obesity interventions. Obesity Research and Clinical Practice, online first, 1-14.
• Carlton, E.L., Holsinger, J., Riddell, M., & Bush, H. (2015). Full-range public health leadership, Part 1: Quantitative analysis. Frontiers in Public Health, 3:73, 1-8.
• Carlton, E.L., Holsinger, J., Riddell, M., & Bush, H. (2015). Full-range public health leadership, Part 2: Qualitative analysis and synthesis. Frontiers in Public Health, 3:174, 1-9.
• Carlton, E.L. & Singh, S. (2015). Accreditation intent, community health assessments, and local health department-hospital partnerships. Frontiers in Public Health Systems and Services Research, 4(1), 1-6.
• Carlton, E.L., & Erwin, P.C. (2015). Answering the Call to Integrate: Simple Strategies from Public Health and Healthcare Executives in One Urban County. Frontiers in Public Health Systems and Services Research, 4(1), 7-13.
• Carlton, E.L. (2014). Answering the call for integrating population health: Insights from health system executives. Advances in Health Care Management, 16, 115-138.
• Carlton, E., & Simmons, L. (2011). Health decision-making among rural women: Physician access and prescription adherence. Rural and Remote Health, 11, 1599-1615.
• Carlton, E., Whiting, J., Bradford, K., Dyk, P, & Vail, A. (2009). Defining factors of successful university-community collaborations: An exploration of one healthy marriage project. Family Relations, 58(1), 28-40.

• American College of Healthcare Executives Exemplary Service Award
• American College of Healthcare Executives Distinguished Service Award
• American College of Healthcare Executives Service Award
• American College of Healthcare Executives Regent’s Senior-Level Healthcare Leader Award
• AUPHA New Member Engagement Award
• Big 12 Conference Faculty Fellow
• CAHME-Ascension Award for Excellence in Healthcare Leadership Development
• CAHME-Aramark Innovation Grant
• Delta Omega Public Health Honor Society, Beta Gamma Chapter
• Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives
• Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow
• Univ. of Kentucky School of Human Environmental Sciences – Centennial Future 100
• University of Memphis David C. Burchfield Excellence in Teaching & Learning Award
• West Virginia University Values Coin

• Administrative Skills: Academic program development and innovation, new program delivery models and modalities, innovative revenue streams through industry and government partnerships, shared governance to maximize faculty engagement in strategic planning efforts, program- and school-level accreditation expertise, community partnership and relationship development, fundraising and development efforts to support programmatic activities and scholarships, and working effectively and integratively across disciplines and academic/functional units.
• Research Specialization/Interests: Psychological safety and total worker health, global health leadership development, healthcare and public health leadership development, integrated healthcare and public health, rural health/health disparities, and qualitative and mixed-methods health services research.
• Teaching Specialization/Interests: Leadership, population health management, global comparative health systems, online and hybrid graduate and professional education, executive education, team-based learning, and competency-based education.
• Professional Associations & Leadership Positions:
  • American College of Healthcare Executives
    • Regent
    • Vice-President, President, Immediate Past-President, WV ACHE
    • Journal of Healthcare Management Editorial Board
  • American Public Health Association
    • Section Councilor – Health Administration Section
    • Co-Treasurer – Health Administration Section
    • Academic Health Department Affiliate Committee Member
  • Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health
    • Co-Chair, Academic Affairs Section
    • Education Advisory Committee
    • Framing the Future: Education for Public Health 2030 Expert Panel
    • Global Engagement and Partnerships Advisory Committee
  • Association of University Programs in Health Administration
    • Chair, AUPHA/Health Administration Press Editorial Board for Graduate Studies
    • Co-Chair, Public and Population Health Section
    • Annual Meeting Planning Committee
    • Leadership Development Committee
  • Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education
    • Population Health Management Task Force
  • Consortium of Universities for Global Health
    • Global Health Workforce Panel

Erik L. Carlton, DrPH, MS, CPH, FACHE is a tenured Associate Professor of Health Policy, Management and Leadership at the West Virginia University School of Public Health. He is also Director of the Appalachian Health Workforce Institute. An innovative and accomplished academic leader, Dr. Carlton is board-certified in both public health and healthcare administration. He has nearly two decades of leadership experience in both the private and public sectors; and has consulted numerous hospital systems, health departments, and healthcare organizations, as well as several universities and other large businesses. A member of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health’s Healthy Work Design External Advisory Council, his current research focuses on psychological safety with an emphasis in both healthcare and higher education. His previous scholarship focused heavily on the integration of healthcare and public health systems and on university-community relations. Dr. Carlton is the author of four books and dozens of peer-reviewed papers and presentations. He has a strong presence in global healthcare leadership development, having lived in both France and China and having trained clinical and administrative leaders from over 70 countries. Dr. Carlton holds a Doctor of Public Health degree in Health Services Management and a Master of Science degree in Family Studies with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy, both from the University of Kentucky, and an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Board Certifications and Licensures

• Board-certified in Health Administration (FACHE) – American College of Healthcare Executives
• Board-certified in Public Health (CPH) – National Board of Public Health Examiners
• Certified Psychological Safety Coach – LeaderFactor