Whitehall native Susan Orsega selected as acting U.S. surgeon general

Rear Admiral Susan Orsega was in her Maryland home in late January when she received quite possibly the most important phone call of her life.

President Joe Biden selected the Baldwin High School graduate to serve as acting U.S. surgeon general as Dr. Vivek Murthy goes through the nomination/confirmation process to formally become the country’s 21st surgeon general.

It is unclear when Murthy would be confirmed by the Senate.

“It’s really an honor,” said Orsega, 52. “I’m incredibly humbled by it. I’m really truly thankful for all those who challenged me in my life. Without the unwavering support and inspiration from my family (spouse, Michelle and child, Anderson), I certainly would not be here today. It’s been a fantastic journey that I would have never predicted when I was in high school.”

Orsega also serves as the director of Commissioned Corps Headquarters, where she is responsible for directing all functions of personnel, administration, operations, deployment and other aspects of about 6,500 members of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.

She served as the chief nurse officer of the USPHS from May 2016 to March 2019 and was assigned to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health prior to her appointment.

Her upbringing

Orsega grew up in Whitehall and is the daughter of George and Betty Orsega.

Her mother worked as a substitute French teacher in the Baldwin-Whitehall School District. Her father sold funeral home services.

“I credit both of them in different ways,” Orsega said of her upbringing. “My father (for) giving me the discipline and focus. My mother really has creativity. They gave me characteristics that I certainly carried over into my adulthood.”

Orsega graduated from Baldwin-Whitehall in 1986. She was captain of the cross country team and a peer of current Superintendent Randal Lutz, who said the community is very excited about Orsega’s selection.

“My classmate and fellow Baldwin High School alum will make an outstanding acting U.S. Surgeon General,” Lutz said. “Her selection to fulfill this role by President Biden is an inspiring reminder of the positive impact that a Baldwin-Whitehall education can have on our students, our community and our country.

“I hope that our current and future students will see Susan’s achievements as an empowering example of the kind of professional success that they can also achieve by dedicating themselves to excellence in their fields.”

Orsega developed a love of science and pursuit of knowledge while at high school.

“I was fascinated by the problems that science offers, and how to solve those problems,” she said.

Her track coaches, Ed Helbig and Paul Brennfleck, stressed the importance of discipline and persistence when approaching difficult situations.

“These are skills that I still use to this day,” Orsega said. “The lessons that they taught me about approaching situations with executive awareness and being always focused – it is part of who I am today.”

She credits English teachers Norrie Willig and Pam Livingston with challenging her to not only be a better writer but to see the world with a sense of humanity and humility.

Orsega was also able to use lessons from French teacher Susan Fry while serving in Mali, West Africa.

She said she visits the area periodically and has very fond memories of school. Orsega briefly served as the district’s mascot.

A career begins

Orsega started her career about 31 years ago with USPHS as a junior at Towson State University, now called Towson University. She was given an opportunity in its nursing program to work as a public health service officer for a summer.

Her time was so fulfilling that she returned as a senior and committed to working at USPHS for several years after graduation in 1990.

“I really have always had a passion for serving those who are most needed and in impoverished, imprisoned and under-served populations across the world,” Orsega said. “When I placed my application in for the student program, I really wanted to help out the nation and help out those in most need.”

She was assigned to a research hospital at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md.

Orsega was in a unit taking care of HIV patients at the height of that epidemic.

She worked under the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and current chief medical advisor to the president, Dr. Anthony Fauci while there.

Orsega was deployed with a medical team to New York after Sept. 11, 2001, and was involved in at least 14 other national and international disaster/humanitarian missions in which her nursing and leadership skills were put to the test.

Towson University President Kim Schatzel said Orsega is an inspiration to students.

“Our College of Health Professions and its alumni continue to prove essential to our state and our nation,” Schatzel said via a news release. “Towson University is truly an institution providing leadership for the public good, and I can think of no better representation at this critical juncture in our nation’s history than in Susan Orsega’s appointment.”

Orsega was on the university’s track and field team and spoke to a Towson nursing leadership and management class in 2016.

This #ThrowbackThursday comes with a @surgeon_general 's warning.

Congratulations to @TowsonU/@Towson_TFXC alumna Rear Admiral Susan Orsega ‘90 acting surgeon general, as appointed by President Biden.#UnitedWeRoar | #NCAATFXC pic.twitter.com/35jp3AZGSa

— Towson Athletics (@TowsonTigers) January 28, 2021

“At no time in American history has the role of surgeon general been more important,” said Melanie Perreault, Towson University provost and executive vice president for academic and student affairs. “We are extraordinarily proud of Susan Orsega as, indeed, we are of our many alumni working so hard to defeat this pandemic.”

The current pandemic

Orsega said she recommends people get the covid vaccine as a way to curb the coronavirus pandemic.

“One thing that covid has made abundantly clear for me is how small our planet is and how interconnected we are and how much we need to work across all the professions to address this complex public health crisis,” she said. “We have to make sure we do this together in a united way.

“The importance of obtaining the covid vaccinations will help reduce the burden of the health care system. It will also require us to battle this fight together. That’s what my focus is in the two hats the acting surgeon general wears.”

Orsega is one of only a few nurses to be named the nation’s top doctor.

Richard Carmona, a physician and nurse, served as surgeon general under the George W. Bush administration.

Nurse Sylvia Trent-Adams was appointed acting surgeon general by former President Donald Trump in 2017 after he fired Murthy.

More information about Orsega and her career can be found at dcp.psc.gov and hhs.gov.

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