Connecticut Department of Public Health Chosen to Participate in Evidence Based Public Health Training
ATLANTA (PRWEB) July 01, 2019 -- The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) announced today that the Connecticut Department of Health has been selected from a competitive pool of applications to receive specialized training in evidence-based public health (EBPH) from the Prevention Research Center in St. Louis training team this month.
The CDC and NACDD-funded training is part of NACDD’s comprehensive professional development offerings to states to help improve capacity and capability in chronic disease prevention and control and health promotion programming. NACDD offers the evidence-based public health training annually in up to two state or territorial Chronic Disease Units. The training is provided at no cost to the selected states.
NACDD began offering these trainings to states in 2010; Connecticut will be the 17th state to participate.
The aim of this course is to build skills in applying evidence-based decision-making to improve population health and to advance health equity. It uses the principles of scientific reasoning and systematic uses of data and information systems, drawing from the fields of epidemiology, behavioral science, health economics, and health policy communication.
“Connecticut is extremely excited to be selected to participate in this opportunity which will lead to greater capacity and knowledge about evidence-based approaches to chronic disease,” said Lisa McCooey, Acting Chronic Disease Director at the Connecticut Department of Public Health. “The ‘train-the-trainer’ model will enable Connecticut to continue educating public health professionals regarding the importance of implementing chronic disease programs rooted in scientific evidence,” she said.
A team from the Prevention Research Center in St. Louis, housed at Washington University in St. Louis, will travel to Connecticut July 15, 2019, for an immersive, four-day program. In this program, a subset of the course attendees will work with the EBPH Training Coordinator to replicate the training within their state.
The goal is to continue building capacity among practitioners and partners to improve the effectiveness of their public health programs and policies. The state-based training is an outgrowth of the Prevention Research Center’s national course held in St. Louis. It focuses on nine specific content areas, addressing many of the core competencies for public health professionals adopted by various accrediting bodies. Through presentations, practice exercises, and case examples, the course takes a hands-on approach, emphasizing the application of principles while using information that is readily available to busy practitioners.
“NACDD’s Mission and our current strategic plan emphasize strengthening state-based leadership in chronic disease prevention and control and health promotion,” said John W. Robitscher, MPH, NACDD CEO. “We know that science can take time to translate into practical application, and the evidence-based public health training program, in collaboration with our partners, is intended to expedite that process to improve more lives and more communities.”
“The value added of the state-based EBPH training is that 30 to 40 practitioners who work together go through training together. It gives them an opportunity to network and to begin applying what they’ve learned in real time with local examples. They also get to see the course modeled—the first step in preparing them to replicate the training for their colleagues and partners,” added Carol Brownson, EBPH Training Coordinator.
For more information on NACDD-sponsored Evidence-based Public Health training, visit chronicdisease.org/page/HealthTraining. To learn more about Evidence-based Public Health, see evidencebasedpublichealth.org.
The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) and its more than 7,000 members seek to strengthen state-based leadership and expertise for chronic disease prevention and control in states and nationally. Established in 1988, in partnership with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NACDD is the only membership association of its kind to serve and represent every chronic disease division in all states and U.S. territories. For more information, visit chronicdisease.org.
Paige Rohe, National Association of Chronic Disease Directors, http://www.chronicdisease.org, 404-924-8295, [email protected]
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