The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #60937

Betty Bekemeier, MSN, MPH, RN, Turning Point National Program Office, University of Washington-School of Public Health, 6 Nickerson St., Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98109, 206-616-8410, bettybek@u.washington.edu

Reforming the public health infrastructure requires substantial systems changes at the state level, including the reorganization of state agencies’ plans, roles, and relationships with other sectors and communities. Beyond the limited time period of pilot programs and grants, how are these public health system changes to be sustained?

Turning Point is an initiative of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to transform and strengthen the public health system. 21 states have developed multi-sector public-private partnerships to produce public health improvements plans, and from these, have chosen one or more priorities for implementation. Public health reform efforts occur within complex fiscal and political environments, however, and must cope with both uncertainty and inertia in the process of implementing change.

State partners have developed a variety of approaches to the challenge of incorporating effective community collaborations as a permanent strategy for transforming public health systems. We will present an analysis of data from a variety of sources on Turning Point experiences and state partnerships. We will describe key themes and lessons learned, and explore trade-offs in relation to political contexts and constituencies. Implications for future public health reform efforts in relation to the IOM’s “The Future of the Public’s Health in the 21rst Century” will be discussed.

Learning Objectives:

• At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to:
• 1. Identify key issues that face state-level public health practitioners seeking to build effective, sustainable projects to improve the public health system.
• 2. Describe three strategies used by Turning Point states for implementing and institutionalizing public health systems change.
• 3. Discuss the risks and benefits of these strategies in relation to local resources and constraints.

Keywords: Collaboration, System Involvement

Related Web page: www.turningpointprogram.org/

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: no
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.