On November 15-16, 2022, thirteen alumni of the Kansas Local Public Health Leadership Series convened in Wichita. The purpose of this training event was to ensure that participants left with tools to engage in meaningful conversations with their staff and colleagues, with a special focus on building a trustworthy process and taking care of yourself …
Local Public Health Leadership Series Alumni 2022 Read More »
This is a unique time for public health preparedness. The response to an unprecedented pandemic coincides with the 20th anniversary of the Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) program. The confluence presents a singular opportunity to examine how the preparedness community can learn from past response efforts and better position communities to meet the challenges that lay ahead. …
The Evolution of Public Health Emergency Preparedness Read More »
“The amazing images of the Cartwheel Galaxy captured by the James Webb Space Telescope this summer, and before them the spectacular images from the Hubble telescope, have amazed and inspired many people worldwide, who now look to NASA as a trusted federal agency. It hasn’t always enjoyed such strong support. After the Challenger disaster, in which the space shuttle with …
Public Health Agencies: Learn from NASA About Regaining the Public’s Trust Read More »
By Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector, June 21, 2022 This year, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment announced a new certification for these health workers, the first in the state to recognize the role they play in linking communities to health and social services. Development of the certification involved more than 40 members of the Kansas …
As the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted workforce challenges and longstanding health inequities within the healthcare and public health systems, interest in developing the community health worker (CHW) workforce has intensified across the country. A CHW is a frontline public health professional who shares life experience, trust, compassion, culture, and value alignment with the communities they serve. CHWs can work …
States Continue Efforts to Build and Strengthen Community Health Workforce Read More »
Local health departments play a vital role in supporting breastfeeding families in Kansas communities. The Kansas Breastfeeding Coalition and Wichita State University’s Community Engagement Institute, in partnership with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, recognize and celebrate local health departments that are leading the way in this work through the Breastfeeding Friendly Local Health Department designation. Breastfeeding …
Breastfeeding Friendly Local Health Department Designation Read More »
By Debra Venzke, University of Iowa College of Public Health “The COVID-19 Pandemic has been detrimental to many people’s mental health, with the stresses on workers in health care, education, and other essential services frequently highlighted. Less often, however, has attention been focused on the mental health needs of the public health workforce that has …
By the Commission on Racial Equity and Justice Governor Laura Kelly signed Executive Order No. 20-48 in June of 2020, establishing the Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice. The focus of this Commission is to study issues of racial equity and justice in Kansas. Two reports have been released: Policing and Law Enforcement in …
Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice Report Read More »
By Kansas Reflector, Tim Carpenter “The trove of information in the report produced by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment offered insight into medical and behavioral challenges based on 10,000 telephone interviews conducted throughout 2019. The survey performed since the 1990s in Kansas with support from nonprofit health foundations and the U.S. Centers for …
KDHE Report Affirms Education, Income, Race and Gender Influence Health Risks Read More »
By: Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector “… while the number of infant deaths reported is the lowest on record for the state, disparities in infant mortality rates among vulnerable populations persist in 2019.” This article features information from the Kansas Infant Mortality & Stillbirth Report (2019) by KDHE Bureau of Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics. READ …
Racial Disparities in Infant Mortalities Persist Despite Record Low Rates in Kansas Read More »