INSIGHT & INSPIRATION FROM APHA’S 2012 MIDYEAR MEETING

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Survive All In This Friends Prevention, Strategies
& Thrive Together For Health Opportunity & Equity for Health
convenience stores. However, the new resources are also allowing public health practitioners to
pursue a health-in-all-policies approach — “finally, public health is getting a seat at the table
with the broader policymakers. This is the beginning of the health-in-all-policies philosophy
we’re trying to permeate through the state,” Engel told attendees. For example, in North Carolina’s
Pitt County, community health has been officially identified as a goal in the county’s 2030
land-use plan. CTG funds are also promoting linkages between community health resources
and clinical preventive services “in a way that really puts boots on the ground,” Engel said.
“This is real transformational change for public health in North Carolina, to be working closely
with our clinical partners and doing the things we know work on a population basis, but in the
clinic,” he said.
The North Carolina health department is using a regional approach to its CTG work, leveraging
existing regional infrastructures. For example, workers in existing Area Health Education
Center regions are partnering with clinical practices to implement Million Hearts. Using such a
regional approach means North Carolina’s CTG work can have the farthest reach possible. For
instance, the state’s Mecklenburg and Wake counties were not funded during the first round
of CTG grants. But because the state is taking a regional approach to CTG work, the two large
communities still have a seat at the table and will be able to take advantage of new efforts even
without direct funding.
“Leveraging our existing infrastructure is really the only way we can go about this in such a
large state,” Engel said.
From sessions 2004/2009, Innovations in Community Prevention, June 27
STEPS FOR ACTION:
• HELP bring public health
and medicine back together
again. Health care systems
are busy working to meet
new ACA directives and are
realizing that communitybased
solutions will be key.
• LEVERAGE existing public
health structures and
resources to make the most
out of new ACA prevention
and public health funds.
Use new grant funding to
build capacity outside of
traditional public health
services.