Twenty-first century health department consolidations in Ohio: Perspectives from participants

Since 2001, there have been seventeen consolidations of local health departments in the State of Ohio. In early 2013, staff from Kent State University's Center for Public Policy and Health conducted in-depth interviews with key officials who were involved in these consolidations. While most of these individuals were Health Commissioners with executive responsibility for health department management and services, others were public officials with other responsibilities relating to the consolidations. Those interviewed responded to questions regarding the motivations that gave rise to the consolidation and the resulting financial and public health service impacts.

This presentation will review the results of recent studies relevant to health department consolidation and overview data that were collected through interviews conducted in Ohio. In so doing, it addresses motivations and decision-making processes leading up to consolidation and financial and public health service impacts. Key results offer insights and evidence regarding the extent to which health department consolidations in Ohio yield expected impacts relating to financial benefits and costs, opportunities for strategic re-directions of public health services, and effects on public health services. The presentation will also provide an opportunity for those in attendance to assess and discuss the extent to which the findings presented for recent consolidations in Ohio apply to other states and locations.