Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #111249

Jeanne Alongi, MPH, National Association of State and Territorial Chronic Disease Program Directors, 4301 Breuner Avenue, Sacramento, CA 95819, 916-452-2440, jeanne@alongi.org and Karen Petersmarck, MPH, PhD, Division of Chronic Disease & Injury Control, Michigan Department of Community Health, 3423 N. Martin Luther King Jr., Blvd., PO Box 30195, Lansing, MI 48909.

This presentation will demonstrate how state health departments can improve chronic disease prevention and management efforts by adding a focus on improving the health of older adults. Recommendations are based on a three-stage process initiated by the Association of State and Territorial Chronic Disease Program Directors, CDC and other partners in the public health and aging networks.

Stage 1 was an assessment of current collaborations between state health department and state aging agencies, the results of which are published in “The Aging States Project: Promoting Opportunities for Collaboration between the Public Health and Aging Services Networks.” The second stage used a concept mapping process to collect and organize ideas on potential roles for state-level public health agencies. Ideas were elicited from experts in public health and aging, from public and private sectors, academia and voluntary organizations. The third stage further refined the concepts generated by the concept mapping and prioritized recommendations for key action steps for state health departments. Action steps focus on three areas: Capacity Development, Science and Epidemiology, and Partnership.

The recommendations described in this presentation provide a framework to state health departments and their partners for building healthy aging capacity in a purposeful and coordinated manner. Case studies will demonstrate how key action steps have been successfully carried out in states.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, participants will be able to

• Articulate the relevance of healthy aging initiatives for public health programs to prevent and control chronic disease.
• Identify stakeholders in policy and planning efforts for state level public health aging initiatives.
• Describe 5 priorities for state level public health action in healthy aging.

Keywords: Aging, Public Health Agency Roles

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation