Scutch's Blog

Guest Blogger: Lauren Coil for Session 4E

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:56:51 +0000

For anyone with an interest in finding ways to better use survey data at the local level, this session will be highly beneficial to attend. Beginning at 2:00, Wednesday, April 18^th, experts in the field of survey data research will discuss their explorations and applied use of survey data. Dr. Susan Babey will discuss examples of population health data that is linked with external data to conduct research that can inform policy making. Ms. A.J. Scheitler will talk about her research on why local health data is important to local health departments. The third panelist, Dr. Glen Mays will discuss the use of state and local health survey data in public health services and systems research. The session will be moderated by Dr. E. Richard Brown. View additional session information and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_4E.

Guest Blogger: Rachel Hogg for Session 4D

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:38:18 +0000

Is multi-jurisdictional collaboration in public health better? Session 4D, moderated by Dr. Paul Halverson, examines various aspects of multi-jurisdictional collaboration and the sharing of services in public health. Jessica Waggett will present on the lessons learned from district creation and how to effectively plan for multi-jurisdictional models as future communities explore service sharing as a strategy to provide essential public health services and meet accreditation standards. Dr. Jessica Retrum will address how network structure in public health collaboratives relates to perceptions of success, value and trust rankings among members, and outcomes. Su Jin Jeong examines the levels of interorganizational relationships between Tribal and State Maternal and Child Health organizations and Dr. Joshua Vest will explore the current state of resource sharing among local health departments across the nation in terms of public health activities, nature of the relationships, and geography. View additional session information and download PDFs at http://bit.ly/KC12_4D.

Guest Blogger: Doris Castellanos-Cruz for Session 4C

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:28:18 +0000

Wednesday’s Quality Improvement Session moderated by Dr. Carmen Nevarez will feature Dr. Mary Davis who will present her study “Building Integrated Culture of Quality Theory in Local Health Departments: Moving from qi to QI.” Findings support existing literature on integrated QI culture organizational features and contribute new knowledge on emerging issues that support this culture. Dr. William Livingood will talk about “Health Districts as Quality Improvement Collaboratives and Multi-Jurisdictional Accreditation Entities.” Principal findings show a strong consensus emerged across various constituencies that districts were critical for local public health to provide essential services. Regionalizing using Georgia Districts has major potential for supporting QI and meeting quality assurance standards associated with accreditation. Finally, Dr. Les Beitsch will tell “The QI Story Behind the QI Storyboards: Lessons Learned from the Multi-State Learning Collaborative”. The Multi-State Learning Collaborative: Leads States in Public Health Quality Improvement, brought state and local health departments in 16 states together with other stakeholders to prepare for national voluntary accreditation and to implement quality-improvement practices. View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_4C

Guest Blogger: Kristina Rabarison for Session 4B

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:26:57 +0000

The public health organization and structure is influenced by many factors. A 2012 Institute of Medicine report on integrating primary care and public health described an integration continuum through mutual awareness, cooperation, collaboration, and partnership to achieve better population health results.

Our speakers will discuss use of best practices by community coalitions, political factors and influence on state health agency priority setting, abandonment of clinical services provisions in local health departments, and public health services availabilities for older adults. View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_4B.

Guest Blogger: Alex Howard for Session 4A

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 11:22:21 +0000

Wednesday afternoon, April 18 a session devoted to “Public Health Datasets & Research Agenda” will occur at this year’s PHSSR Keeneland Conference. Ms. Cynthia D. Lamberth will moderate this session which features presentations by Dr. Lois Banks and Mr. Ilya Plotkin, Dr. Jeff Jones, and Ms. Patricia Sweeney. As indicated by the session’s title, presentations will focus on existing datasets and their relevance to the newly created PHSS research agenda; specifically, Dr. Banks, Mr. Plotkin, and Dr. Jones focus on TRAIN and its utility in conducting public health workforce research. Ms. Sweeney’s presentation will facilitate the process of identifying and assessing available data sets that can be used to answer research questions related to PHSSR. View additional details about the session and download PDF of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_4A.

Guest Blogger: Kristina Rabarison for Session 3D

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:25:41 +0000

A more sustainable public health funding is making headlines as of late. With the April 10th release of the Institute of Medicine report on public health funding and the recent $5 billion cut to the Prevention and Public Health Fund, finding money to support our nation’s public health system is an action item for public health leaders, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.

Our speakers will shed a light on how economics influence health outcomes, budget and priority setting criteria in state health agencies, short-term impact of state generosity on population health, and local health departments’ resilience during an economic crisis. View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_3D.

Guest Blogger: Robert Shapiro for Session 3C

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:23:07 +0000

For those who are interested in the current state of practiced-based research, this is the session for you. Dr Gulzar Shah will be leading our session off and discussing exactly who is conducting research and what characteristics of health departments are more likely to predict research activities. Ms Holly Ann Burt will be following Dr Shah and providing how to best effectively conduct one part of that research, the literature review, as well as which databases hold the most promise. Ms Lisa Lang will finish up our session by presenting where the appropriate resources are for public health services and systems researchers and what the National Library of Medicine and others are doing to address the need for information in public health practice. In my humble opinion, we have a great panel lined up and it should spark some good discussion; hope to see you there! View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_3C.

Guest Blogger: Elizabeth Harper for Session 3B

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:20:27 +0000

There is little PHSSR focusing on local boards of health. Ms. Branco, Dr. Hays, Ms. Harper, and Dr. Hyde will present their research on boards of health during Session 3B of the 2012 Keeneland Conference. Ms. Branco will present the results of the 2011 National Association of Local Boards of Health Profile Survey. Dr. Hays and Ms. Harper will present their projects that examine board characteristics and county health outcomes. Dr. Hyde will conclude the session with an examination of the Massachusetts public health system. Each presentation adds valuable information about boards of health and furthers our understanding of how boards can influence the public health system. Abstracts for these sessions are available at: http://bit.ly/KC12_3B.

Guest Blogger: Jay Swacker for Session 3A

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:13:57 +0000

Dr. Kim Gearin is presenting on how to build system level QI, based on her work with the Minnesota Department of Health. She is detailing a seven-month QI process in Minnesota involving 12 teams of public health managers and staff. Dr. Elizabeth Gyllstrom is discussing a quality assessment in the Minnesota Department of Health. The assessment revealed significant differences in multiple dimensions of QI maturity within the organization and revealed tensions between research and practice. Dr. Scott Frank will be discussing his direct observation of local public health in 30 geographically and demographically diverse Ohio LHDs. Project staff will observe LHD Registered Sanitarians conduct food service establishment inspections and follow up with confidential interviews and profiles. Ms. Nancy Katagiri will discuss measuring and improving the quality of New York’s integrated HIV/AIDS and STD Field Services Program. Her results indicate that staff reported lower job satisfaction and higher stress after integration, but that they perceived better client service outcomes. View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_3A.

Guest Blogger: Jay Swacker for Session 2D

admin — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:12:01 +0000

Dr. Patrick Bernet is presenting “Factors Associated with Public Health Budget Increases and Decreases.” Preliminary findings reveal that Local Health Departments with no Boards of Health, served larger populations, or relied on state governments for a larger proportion of their budget were more susceptible to cuts. Dr. Rivka Liss-Levinson is presenting on trends in State Public Health Agency Budget cuts. She is discussing her results in the context of informing strategic decisions for funding state public health services. Dr. Debbie Humphries is discussing her work on revenue streams and service delivery for Connecticut local health jurisdictions. Her results show unemployment rates explained variation in personnel indicators, while rural-urban differences accounted for variation in multiple services. Dr. Katie Sellers is discussing current priorities in state health agencies as identified in ASTHO’s 2011 profile. The top priorities indicated by state public health leaders include: infrastructure/capacity/IT/workforce, mitigating funding cuts, maternal child health, quality improvement and communicable disease control. View more about the session and download PDFs of the presentations at http://bit.ly/KC12_2D.