The COVID-19 pandemic exposed cracks in
America's public health data infrastructure; WAI to
place approximately 140 data and technology professionals to
advance information system improvements in 49 U.S. jurisdictions,
territories and Tribal authorities
ATLANTA, Sept. 12,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Across the nation, many
public health systems rely on outdated technologies and
disconnected information systems—a challenging reality highlighted
during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Improving these systems
requires updated technologies, increased funding, new policies and
additional skilled technical professionals at all levels of public
health. The CDC Foundation announced today a new Workforce
Acceleration Initiative (WAI) to help meet the technology workforce
needs of the nation's public health systems by providing additional
technology and data experts to support accelerated information
system improvements.
With more modern and integrated systems, public health
authorities (PHAs) will be better equipped to rapidly detect and
respond to new threats, make more informed and timely decisions,
and deliver healthier outcomes for the populations they serve. WAI
is supported by a nearly $74 million
award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
through a partnership with the Association of Public Health
Laboratories (APHL) and is designed to support CDC's Public Health
Data Strategy.
"During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw the devastating impact of
cracks in America's public health data infrastructure. For example,
some health departments sent COVID-19 data to CDC by fax, which
crimped the flow of data, slowed decision-making and created a drag
on the pandemic response. That drag was not a new challenge for the
nation's under-resourced public health system," said Judy Monroe, MD, president and CEO of the CDC
Foundation. "The Workforce Acceleration Initiative will help fuel
information system improvements needed today, and it will infuse
skilled talent across local, state and territorial authorities to
help strengthen the public health workforce of tomorrow."
"CDC has responded to the call from agencies across the nation
to expand the public health workforce by adding more technical
experts," said Jennifer Layden, MD, PhD, director for CDC's
Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance, and Technology. "This
significant investment in the Workforce Acceleration Initiative
will advance CDC's Public Health Data Strategy to address gaps in
public health data; provide timely and accurate data; reduce the
complexity of data exchange between public health partners,
healthcare organizations and the public; and improve positive
health outcomes for all."
Recruiting and hiring are already underway to place 140 tech and
data experts into 49 selected state, Tribal, local and territorial
(STLT) PHAs across the nation. These placements will include
experts in engineering, software development, IT infrastructure,
informatics and IT project management, to name several skills. The
CDC Foundation has prioritized selecting PHAs that have been
especially limited in their ability to modernize their information
systems due to workforce gaps and fewer resources.
The following selected PHAs reflect a diverse cross-section of
authorities, ranging from county or city PHAs that serve
jurisdictions with more than 100,000 residents to Tribal and
territorial PHAs that may serve fewer than 100,000 residents:
- Alaska Department of Health
- Austin Public Health (Texas)
- Bear River Health Department (Northern Utah)
- Boston Public Health Commission (Massachusetts)
- California Department of Public Health
- California Rural Indian Health Board, Inc. California
Tribal Epidemiology Center (Roseville, CA)
- Cameron County Public Health (Cameron
County, TX)
- City of El Paso Department of Public Health (El Paso, TX)
- City of San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (San Antonio, TX)
- Cleveland Department of Public Health (Ohio)
- County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health (California)
- County of Marin, Department of Health and Human Services,
Public Health Division (California)
- County of Santa Clara Public Health Department (California)
- DC Department of Health (Washington, D.C.)
- Eau Claire City-County Health Department (Wisconsin)
- Franklin County Public Health (Ohio)
- Great Lakes Inter - Tribal Epidemiology Center
(Lac Du Flambeau, WI)
- Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board - Great Plains
Tribal Epidemiology Center (Rapid
City, SD)
- Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services
- Hamilton County General Health District (Ohio)
- Harris County (Texas)
- Illinois Department of Public Health
- Kansas Department of Health and Environment
- Kentucky Department for Public Health
- Louisiana Department of Health, Office of Public Health
- Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness
(Kentucky)
- Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, an Agency of
Maine Department of Health and Human Services
- Maricopa County Department of Public Health (Arizona)
- Mecklenburg County Health Department (North Carolina)
- Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
- Multnomah County Health Department (Oregon)
- Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
(New York)
- North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services
- Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (Tribes in
Idaho, Oregon and Washington)
- Oklahoma State Department of Health
- Pima County Health Department (Arizona)
- State of Rhode Island Department of Health
- Salt Lake County Health Department (Utah)
- Snohomish County Health Department (Washington)
- South Carolina Department of Public Health
- South Dakota Department of Health
- State of Hawaii Department of Health
- Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (Washington)
- The Health & Hospital Corporation of Marion County (Indiana)
- Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Public Health Department
(North Dakota)
- Vermont Department of Health
- Virgin Islands Department of Health
- West Virginia Bureau for Public Health
To learn more about or to apply for jobs with WAI, visit
cdcfoundation.org/workforceacceleration.
The Workforce Acceleration Initiative (WAI) is supported by
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through a cooperative
agreement with the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL)
with a financial assistance award totaling $73,945,916 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS.
The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily
represent the official views of, nor an endorsement by, CDC/HHS or
the U.S. Government.
About the CDC Foundation
The CDC Foundation helps the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) save and improve
lives by unleashing the power of collaboration between CDC,
philanthropies, corporations, organizations and individuals to
protect the health, safety and security of America and the world.
The CDC Foundation is the go-to nonprofit authorized by Congress to
mobilize philanthropic partners and private-sector resources to
support CDC's critical health protection mission. Since 1995, the
CDC Foundation has raised over $2.2
billion and launched more than 1,400 programs impacting a
variety of health threats from chronic disease conditions including
cardiovascular disease and cancer, to infectious diseases like
rotavirus and HIV, to emergency responses, including COVID-19 and
Ebola. The CDC Foundation managed hundreds of programs in
the United States and in more than
80 countries last year. Learn more at www.cdcfoundation.org. Follow
the CDC Foundation on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram,
X/Twitter and TikTok.
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SOURCE CDC Foundation