Joey Bernert is a clinical social worker from Troy, Michigan and is currently in their second semester of the MSU Master of Public Health program.

My path to public health has been anything but linear.

My childhood was devoid of safety or guidance, and I struggled to navigate a chaotic home life. I learned early on that suffering, trauma, and abuse do not discriminate by income bracket—it does not matter how many doors are open if the people meant to guide you refuse to do so.

 

By the time I turned 18, I wasn’t thinking about the future—I was thinking about survival. I stole cars. It was fast money, and I justified it because every other option felt like a dead end. For several months, I ran with a car theft ring, convincing myself that I was in control. But the truth was, I was just another broke kid making decisions out of desperation. Eventually, I broke away from that life, moved with my family, forced myself to get back on track, and committed to finishing my associate’s degree at Oakland Community College.

"Over the next few years, I worked, studied, and rebuilt. I pursued different careers while simultaneously grappling with alcoholism, recovering from IV heroin addiction, processing my trauma, and building a future with my wife. Culinary arts gave me a sense of precision and control, but I wanted more. I pursued welding for its technical demands and structure. Still, something was missing. I had spent years fixing machines, fabricating parts, and crafting dishes, but I felt a pull toward something greater.

In May 2019, my father passed away from congestive heart failure — just five months after his diagnosis. Watching his health decline forced me to confront my own mortality. I stopped drinking, lost 55 pounds, and became physically active for the first time in my life.

It was during this time that I realized the intersection of systemic health care failures, personal health, and the importance of preventive medicine. This was my turning point.

In fall 2019, I re-enrolled at Oakland Community College. I began taking courses in Women’s and Gender Studies, and everything in my life suddenly became clear when I read The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. That book forced me to take a deep, interpersonal dive into my upbringing, my disillusionment with labor and survival, my struggles, and my search for purpose. Friedan articulated what I had felt for years: alienation, exploitation, and systemic oppression were not just personal obstacles—they were deeply embedded in the structures around me.

I envisioned myself going to law school in memory of my father. Becoming an attorney symbolized justice, structure, and a way to fight back against the systemic failures that shaped our lives. But the more I studied legal and political theory, the more I saw the contradictions. I wanted to prevent those failures from happening in the first place. I wanted to intervene before the damage was done. That wasn’t going to happen in a courtroom.

"That’s why I chose social work and later public health. I wanted to work upstream, preventing crises instead of litigating them after the fact. I wanted to be where change happens at the point of impact—where policies become lived realities, where barriers to care are broken down before they destroy lives."

 

In 2022 I pursued a Master of Social Work at Oakland University, and I currently work as a clinical social worker in Troy, Michigan. I started the Master of Public Health Program in fall 2024, with plans to graduate in spring 2026. The rural public health concentration will provide me with the tools to address health inequities at the systems level and prepare me for my future Ph.D.

I’m pursuing an MPH because I am a fervent believer in systems-level change. In my work as a clinical social worker, whether I’m providing clinical services to war refugees at community health clinics or working with queer youth in crisis, I see firsthand how systemic barriers impact access to care and overall wellbeing. My future goal is to ensure that rural Americans—those often overlooked by health care systems—are not left behind in the fight for accessible, equitable public health solutions.

This story originally appeared on the Department of Public Health website.