Devika Bhushan is an Indian American pediatrician public health physician, author, and mental health advocate. who served as Acting Surgeon General of California in 2022. She has worked on public health initiatives related to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), toxic stress, mental health gender and health equity.
Education Bhushan was born in Agra, India, and was raised in India, the United States, and the Philippines. Her father is health economist; Indu Bhushan. She earned a bachelor's degree in neuroscience and Behavior from Columbia University, completing her studies with research honors. She later received her Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School. She completed her residency in pediatrics at Johns Hopkins Hospital Bloomberg Children's Center. She later pursued a fellowship in academic general pediatrics at Stanford University. She is board-certified in pediatrics.
Career Bhushan has worked across clinical medicine, academic medicine, and public health leadership. Her work includes health equity, childhood adversity, toxic stress, mental health, and gender equity.
Bhushan joined the Office of the California Surgeon General when it was established in 2019 and became its inaugural Chief Health Officer. Her work included the development of statewide public health strategies addressing childhood adversity, toxic stress, early childhood development, and health equity. She also led preparation of Roadmap for Resilience, the office's first statewide report on adverse childhood experiences and toxic stress, released in December 2020. Her work at the office also included California's Covid-19 pandemic response.
In February 2022, following the resignation of Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris, Bhushan assumed the role of Acting Surgeon General of California. During her tenure, the office continued implementation of the ACEs Aware program, administered with the California Department of Health Care Services, which supports healthcare providers in identifying and responding to childhood trauma.
After leaving state government, Bhushan continued her work in public health, academic medicine, and mental health advocacy. She has an adjunct faculty appointment at Stanford University and delivered the keynote address at the 2023 Stanford Medicine Diversity and Inclusion Forum, where she spoke about stigma and improving communication and equity in healthcare.
Mental health advocacy Bhushan has written and spoken publicly about mental health stigma, bias and discrimination, and has disclosed her experience living with bipolar disorder. In interviews, such as with the Los Angeles Times, she discussed the stigma, discrimination, and stereotypes surrounding the condition and advocated for reducing mental illness stigma and discrimination in healthcare, policies and culture.
She has also served on the Board of Directors of the National Alliance on Mental Illness
Selected publications
Bhushan, D. et al. (2020). Roadmap for Resilience: The California Surgeon General’s Report on ACEs, Toxic Stress, and Health
References