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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Julie Ann St. John, MA, MPH¹, Michael Felix², James N. Burdine, DrPH³, and Monica L. Wendel, MA, MPH³. (1) Center for Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, TAMHSC, 2101 South McColl Road, #140, McAllen, TX 78503, 956-668-6327, jastjohn@srph.tamhsc.edu, (2) Independent Consultant, 3027 Walbert Ave, Allentown, PA 18104, (3) Center for Community Health Development, School of Rural Public Health, 1266 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-1266

The Center for Community Health Development (CCHD), School of Rural Public Health, Texas A&M Health Science Center, has facilitated a community-based health partnership (Estrella Saludable Starr County Health Partnership, ESSCHP) in Starr County—a rural, border county—since 2003. After undergoing a planning phase and beginning an implementation phase, the ESSCHP formed a structure committee to study/recommend possible structure types for long-term partnership sustainability. In Sept. 2004, the county judge approached the ESSCHP about the need for a health department. The structure committee agreed to conduct a ‘feasibility' study on the establishment of a county health department and became the Health Advisory Panel (HAP) for Starr County. After completing the study, the HAP presented findings to the county judge and commissioners' court. The commissioners' court adopted the HAP's recommendation to: “Pass a resolution to establish a Starr County ‘local health unit' composed of a partnership between the county and cities in Starr County to provide some basic public health services.” The intent of this recommendation remained to focus on providing a number of public health services (animal/vector control; code enforcement; immunizations; TB control; disease surveillance; and food vender permits/licenses) and to allow the local health unit to develop a plan to become a county health department in year six. This gives the county and stakeholders an opportunity to develop the necessary infrastructure needed to establish and sustain a county health department—while at the same time, allow the county to provide public health services for its residents.

Learning Objectives: At the end of this session, participants will be able to

• Identify the major barriers/challenges involved in establishing a county health department;
• Describe the relationship between the health advisory panel/ESSCHP and the county judge and commissioner’s court; and
• Discuss necessary steps for a local health unit to become a local county health department.

Keywords: Health Departments, Policy/Policy Development

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation