Mangano Announces Two Department of Health Initiatives Selected to Participate in National Public Health Leadership Program

 

Uniondale, NY (May 2, 2012) –  The Nassau County Child Fatality Review Team (CFRT) and the Nassau Center for Health Initiatives (NCHI) have been selected to participate in the National Leadership Academy for the Public’s Health (NLAPH) program, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Office of State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support (OSTLTS). The NLAPH is a national program focused on improving community health by working with multi-sector leadership teams and training the teams through an applied, team-based collaborative leadership development model.  The program is being implemented by the Center for Health Leadership and Practice (CHLP), a center of the Public Health Institute (PHI), and will provide training and support for a period of one year.

“This program will impart community health teams with the skills to lead across sectors and collaboratively solve complex community health problems in innovative ways,” said Carmen Rita Nevarez MD, MPH, Vice President for External Relations and CHLP's Director. “These are the types of leaders who will ultimately be able to drive critical efforts, such as the adoption of evidence-based policies and practices at the community level, which can have a tangible impact on health outcomes.”

The CFRT will work on an applied learning project that tackles an important community health issue with the goal of improving community public health outcomes.  From January 2009 to the present, the CFRT has reviewed fourteen infant deaths occurring since 2007.  All the cases revealed a risk factor associated with unsafe sleep practices.  Team members from the Departments of Health and Social Services, the Sudden Infant and Child Death Resource Center and the New York State Safe Kids Coalition will participate in this leadership program in their efforts to reduce infant mortality due to unsafe sleeping. 

NCHI’s leadership project, “Health Checks” will work to further develop capacity building to address health disparities and emergency preparedness in communities with the greatest health needs.  Each of the identified communities will work with the leadership team, consisting of staff from the Department of Health, NCHI, New York Institute of Technology and the Applied Science Foundation for Homeland Security, to improve health outcomes and emergency preparedness within their respected communities.

“I am proud of the two Department of Health teams that were selected as a result of a competitive process to participate in this national leadership program,” said County Executive Edward P. Mangano.  “Both of these teams are promoting and protecting the health and safety of the residents of our county.”

NLAPH will provide training and support to assist the teams in successfully addressing infant mortality due to unsafe sleeping and health disparities and emergency preparedness among vulnerable populations. Training and support will focus on two tracks.  The first is the development of leadership skills, including personal and collaborative leadership in a multi-sector environment.  The second emphasizes growth from team-based collaborative work to policy and systems change.  NLAPH is provided at no cost to the participants or the community.

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