Ray Barishansky, MPH

Ray Barishansky, MPH, is the former Deputy Secretary for Health Preparedness and Community Protection at the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the recipient of the 2019 Pinnacle Leadership Award.
From 2016 to 2022, Mr. Barishansky was the Deputy Secretary for Health Preparedness and Community Protection at the Pennsylvania Department of Health. From 2012 to 2015, he served as the Director of the Office of Emergency Medical Services for the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Prior to that, he served as the Chief of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response for the Prince George’s County (MD) Health Department from 2008 to 2012.

Mr. Barishansky is currently completing a Doctoral Program in Public Health (DrPH) at the Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Touro College, a Master of Public Health degree from New York Medical College and a Master of Science in Homeland Security Studies from Long Island University. He is a graduate of the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program held at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University (2006) and has also earned a Certified Public Manager (CPM) certification through Arizona State University.

Mr. Barishansky has served as adjunct faculty at both New York Medical College and Yeshiva University and has been a guest lecturer at the George Washington University EMS degree program, the Philadelphia University Disaster Medicine and Management graduate degree program and the George Mason University Biodefense Graduate program.

Mr. Barishansky has authored, or co-authored, over 300 articles in such publications as EMS Magazine, the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS), EMS Insider, Domestic Preparedness Journal, the Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Emergency Management Magazine, Public Safety Communications, and the Crisis Response Journal (UK). He is a nationally recognized speaker and has made over 100 public presentations at various EMS and Public Health conferences.