Public Health Regionalization: Opportunities and Lessons Learned (Part 3)

September 21, 2007, 10:15-noon
State Capitol, Room 3191

Session Objective:

Public health agencies are strengthening the public health infrastructure by regionalizing some services (i.e., sharing public health resources across city/county/state lines). This forum will provide an overview of regionalization in public health systems, including reasons for regionalizing services; share experiences from four states that have used various approaches such as standardization and centralization to develop regional public health capacity; and identify the types of services for which regionalization is a recommended approach. This information may be useful to legislators and local public health departments seeking to ensure capacity to provide essential public health services while using resources most efficiently.

Key Questions to be Answered:

• What are some benefits of regionalizing public health services? How can public health regionalization maximize the use of limited resources, such as federal preparedness funds?
• How do regional public health systems promote preparedness for public health threats such as disease outbreaks and bioterrorism? Can regional public health systems improve public health generally, as well as improve preparedness for emergencies?
• How is public health regionalization accomplished? What are some successful examples of regionalized systems in California and the U.S.?

Confirmed Panelists:

• Michael Stoto, Ph.D., Professor, Georgetown University School of Nursing & Health Studies
• Harold Cox, M.S.S.W., Associate Dean for Public Health Practice, Boston University School of Public Health
• Christina Welter, M.P.H., Deputy Director, Cook County Department of Public Health

Facilitator:

• Bonnie Sorensen, M.D., M.B.A.,Chief Deputy Director of Policy and Programs, California Department of Public Health

Reservations recommended. Please contact Sue Gutierrez at 916-930-9200 or sgutierrez@chipolicy.org