262360 Who are the Leaders of Accreditation in Local Health Departments: Use of Transformational Leadership and Diffusion of Innovation Theories

Monday, October 29, 2012

Angela Carman, DrPH, MBA, PHR, CHE, ASQ-CQIA , University of Kentucky College of Public Health, National Coordinating Center for Public Health Systems and Services Research, Lexington, KY
While leaders of organizations such as hospitals and schools have utilized an accreditation system for many years, the national public health accreditation system is the first national accreditation effort to measure performance and ensure communities of quality public health services. As difficult economic times cause health departments to adjust services and staff, the field of public health strains under increasing pressures of infectious and chronic disease, concerns of emergency preparedness and the loss of essential services. In these times, the underlying premise of accreditation, performance improvement, has become more important than ever. Of critical importance to the acceptance of performance improvement concepts and accreditation in local health departments is the role of leaders in introducing and sustaining such efforts.

This session will reveal the results of a study which examined, via the 2010 NACCHO Profile Study Survey, those leaders who intend to pursue public health accreditation within the first two years of accreditation availability and compare those characteristics with leaders who do not intend to pursue accreditation within the first two years. Characteristics such as full-time/part-time work status, age, education level and tenure in the position will be compared as will population size served by the health department, total revenue and total expenditures. Results will also include statistically significant leadership and worksite characteristics that predict intent to pursue accreditation. These results can be significant in development of leadership roles and training for accreditation.

Learning Areas:
Administration, management, leadership
Diversity and culture
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health administration or related administration

Learning Objectives:
Differentiate between the personal characteristics of local public health top leaders who intend to seek accreditation in the first two years of voluntary national accreditation from those leaders who do not intend to pursue accreditatation. Differentiate between the characteristics of the local health department work site (ie. jurisdiction, governance, population size etc) where local public health leaders intend to pursue accreditation within the first two years and those who do not intend to pursue accreditation. Evaluate the association between top leader personal and work site characteristics and the intent to pursue or not pursue national voluntary accreditation.

Keywords: Accreditation, Leadership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Angela Carman, DrPH [C], MBA, CHE, PHR is a former critical-access hospital administrator in Kentucky. She received a BS degree in Business Administration at Berea College and a Master’s in Business Administration at Eastern Kentucky University. She is scheduled to complete her doctoral work in public health in 2012 at the University of Kentucky, College of Public Health and has published in the areas of hospital and local health department collaboration.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.