The head of the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service says his officers no longer want to “feel invisible.”
The corps, which provides medical care for the U.S. Coast Guard and the Indian Health Services and supports health services and research across the federal government and around the world, is one of the nation’s uniformed services.
But most Americans “don’t know who we are,” said Adm. Brian Christine, head of the USPHS Commissioned Corps and assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services, in an interview with Military Times.
Given the agency’s role supporting national dietary guidelines, promoting fitness, protecting public health and preserving the nation’s wellness, Christine wants them to know.
The admiral, a urologist by training, launched a public outreach campaign to call attention to the corps the day he was sworn in, starting with increased visibility among members of the armed services.
In meetings with corps officers, Christine said he learned they didn’t feel respected by other uniformed service members. So with his brother, Army Judge Advocate General Maj. Gen. Bobby Christine, he pledged to increase integration with the armed services, starting with joint exercise with soldiers at Fort Myer, Virginia.
Last month, a Commissioned Corps team worked out with Christine and the Navy’s SEAL Team One in San Diego. And they are planning workouts in the coming weeks with Coast Guard men and women and hopes to team with the Space Force and other branches.
“Since we are preaching physical readiness, it seems natural for my officers to engage with and build bridges with the other uniformed services by doing physical training,” Christine said in an interview Wednesday with Military Times.
Members of the 5,400-member USPHS Commissioned Corps officers — doctors, dentists, nurses, pharmacists, dietitians, chemists, engineers, environmental health experts, veterinarians and more — who support public health and medical readiness in 38 government agencies.
They serve overseas — a team is currently in Kenya supporting the response to the Ebola outbreak — and deliver health care in remote locations, including the far reaches of Alaska.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, officers deployed to staff crowded clinics and supported vaccine distribution.
Their duties include deploying to crises, providing medical care to underserved populations, promoting prevention initiatives to fight chronic disease and supporting health education and “health diplomacy.”
But they also have a role in national security, promoting public health initiatives that encourage fitness among the recruit-age population, supporting the health of the armed services by promoting proper nutrition and fitness and ensuring the nation can respond to public health threats.
In that vein, Christine said he wants “my officers, PHS officers, to be out there as examples for diet and fitness and activity and wellness.”
He has instituted new physical fitness mandates, a program known as PHS Mission Fit, to ensure the Commissioned Corps is able to do their jobs.
“If we’re going to be advocating for Americans, men, women, and children, to be physically fit and ready to get the most out of life, then we need to walk that walk ourselves as the Public Health Service, as the Commission Corps,” Christine said.
Until last year, the officers were required to take annual fitness tests that required them to run or walk — or a combination — 1.5 miles “as quickly as possible.”
Alternatively, they could choose to swim, use an elliptical or stationary bike, and do push-ups and planks, with the ability to choose sit-ups or side bridges instead, and toe-touching for flexibility.
The new twice-a-year program includes a 2,000-meter row, expanded stationary bike options, and removal of the flexibility requirement.
The program also includes weekly physical training and motivational challenges.
The changes represent a cultural shift for the corps, Christine said, but “it’s a change we want.”
“I will get videos from my officers, literally around the world, and they’ll video a group out doing PT together,” Christine said.
Christine was appointed a four-star admiral during his ceremonial swearing-in as assistant secretary for Health and Human Services, a direct commission that is common for the position.
He earned his medical degree from Emory University and moved to Alabama to complete his residency in urology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He ran several urology clinics in Alabama specializing in erectile dysfunction.
With this background, he contributed to the development of the clinical practice guidelines to support Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s policies on testosterone screening and is part of an effort to draft clinical guidance on testing and hormonal treatment for female service members.
He is a committed supporter of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again initiative and believes the USPHS Commissioned Corps plays a role in ensuring that dining facilities in U.S. public schools, the military and the federal prison system provide healthy choices. Christine said the corps also has a place in determining that the Defense Commissary Agency’s stock also “reflects health foods and healthy choices.”
For now, the Commissioned Corps, he said, will lead by example.
“I think evangelizing to the members of men and women in uniform, like we’re doing with this format — to take these things seriously, to get out there, to get your exercise, eat the right diet, take your health seriously, hormonal health and otherwise — that’s part of the pathway forward,” Christine said.
The U.S. has six branches of the armed forces — the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force and Coast Guard — and two additional uniformed services, the USPHS Commissioned Corps and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps.
The latter is the smallest, with roughly 330 officers.
Both the USPHS and NOAA Commissioned Corps wear work uniforms similar to the Coast Guard operational dress uniform and service dress blues and dress uniforms that resemble Navy uniforms with insignia specialized for each service.
During his ceremonial swearing-in, Christine encouraged members to wear their uniforms at all opportunities.
“When someone says ‘Thank you for your service, use that time to explain who you are, what you are, and what public health officers do to keep America healthy,” Christine said. “Be seen, evangelize. Prove to Americans that when they see our uniforms, they see compassion, they see love, they see excellent service.”
