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Monday, March 23, 2015: 3:15 PM-4:15 PM
Potomac 1 (Hyatt Regency Crystal City)
Summary: This workshop will highlight the experience of two schools of public health, Boston University and Yale, leaders in the Public Health Systems and Services Research (PHSSR) and Public Health Practice-Based Research Network (PBRN) movement, and the larger national PHSSR and PBRN effort, and invite dialogue on strategies for advancing the PHSSR agenda and increasing engagement within the public health academic community.
Learning Objectives: 1) Discuss progress and issues in the field of public health services and systems research (PHSSR) and the role of public health schools/programs in advancing the “science of practice.”
2) Identify strategies to enhance the role of academic schools/programs in developing research that can inform and transform how public health is organized, financed, and delivered.
Description: The field of Public Health Systems and Services Research (PHSSR) is vital to the future of public health in the U.S. National trends towards accreditation of local and state health departments, heightened attention on quality improvement measures, and integration of public health and primary care, present compelling issues and questions that are fertile ground for PHSSR. Considerable progress has occurred in recent years to engage practitioners and academic public health institutions in productive PHSSR partnerships, particularly involving local and state health departments. Boston University and Yale exemplify the leadership and facilitative role that schools of public health can provide in this endeavor. Both institutions served as the catalyst for the creation of public health practice based research networks (PBRNs) in their home states of MA and CT, and each continues to play a pivotal role in the development, implementation and dissemination of PHSSR in their regions and nationally. An essential element of this role is engaging faculty and students in PBRN research and developing the pipeline by cultivating interest in this field of research and actively supporting PHSSR research careers. Faculty and students at BU and Yale schools of public health have been enlisted as PBRN investigators, research assistants, and champions. This scientific input and guidance has been crucial to the development of sound research proposals, procurement of funding, and quality control in PBRN studies. However, significant challenges persist. The need for academic researchers for PHSSR exceeds present capacity, a substantial challenge for the field. Another barrier is the lack of sufficient and diverse funding to support larger studies. These obstacles in turn may deter interest in the field by research scientists. Most PBRN studies thus far have been relatively small in scope. By definition PBRN sponsored research is informed by public health practitioners, and predominantly local and state health departments. Research scientists who participate must be willing to align with the priorities of practice partners and devote their expertise to support this agenda. In CT and MA, states with complex, decentralized governmental public health delivery systems, these priorities have manifest in a number of studies related to the structure, efficiency, quality, and funding of public health services. Most recently, the CT and MA PBRNs have collaborated on a joint study of regional public health service sharing in their states. As part of a national network of PBRNs, MA and CT also contribute to the larger PHSSR agenda. The National Coordinating Center (NCC), led by the University of Kentucky, supports PBRNs across the country to advance the design, conduct and translation of applied studies that inform public health practice and policy. PBRNs are the engine for this research and warrant the active support and engagement of academic schools and programs of public health. This workshop will highlight the experience of two schools of public health in the PHSSR and PBRN movement, and the larger national PBRN efforts of the NCC, and invite dialogue on strategies for advancing the PHSSR agenda and increasing engagement within the public health academic community.
Presenters:
Elaine L. O'Keefe, MS, Executive Director Office of Public Health Practice, Yale University School of Public Health
and
Anne Fidler, PhD, Boston University School of Public Health
Moderator:
Glen P. Mays, PhD, Professor and Director, University of Kentucky