Kansas Public Health Association

AN ANNUAL TWO-DAY CONFERENCE, WHICH INCLUDED BOTH MEMBERS AND NON-MEMBERS INTERESTED IN PUBLIC HEALTH, WAS HELD SEPTEMBER 24-25, 2019 IN TOPEKA, KANSAS. THERE WERE APPROXIMATELY 180 ATTENDEES INCLUDING REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE KANSAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & ENVIRONMENT, LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS, ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS, AND PRIVATE HEALTH ORGANIZATIONS. KPHA USES KEY ELEMENTS OF PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGHOUT OUR LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE. OUR ORGANIZATION IS USING THE VISION THROUGH KEY OBJECTIVES INCLUDING ENHANCING THE EXISTING FRAMEWORK FOR A PUBLIC HEALTH SYSTEM, AND INVESTING AND INNOVATING WITH PARTNERS. KPHA REPRESENTS PUBLIC HEALTH PROFESSIONALS PRACTICING IN NEARLY EVERY COUNTY IN KANSAS, AS WELL AS PRACTITIONERS AND RESEARCHERS IN A VARIETY OF THE STATE'S ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS. KPHA PARTNERS THROUGH ITS EXISTING NETWORK OF STATE AND LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS AND ENGAGES SEVERAL NATIONAL CONTENT EXPERTS. KPHA'S ACTIVITIES TO DATE HAVE CREATED A FRAMEWORK OF PUBLIC HEALTH COLLABORATION ACROSS PARTNERS THAT LEVERAGES SHARED APPROACHES AND EFFORT USING EXISTING WORK WITHIN COMMUNITIES. THESE PROJECTS ARE A CATALYST APPROACH, TO SUPPORT THE SYSTEM'S ENERGY TOWARD NEW ACTIVITIES AND ADVANCEMENT ACROSS ALL SECTORS FOR HEALTH AND WELLNESS. ESTABLISHING A SHARED APPROACH, DEFINITION FOR POPULATION HEALTH, AND JOINT COMMUNICATIONS ACROSS HOSPITALS, PUBLIC HEALTH, COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS AND ACADEMIC PARTNERS HELPS GENERATE SYNERGIES TO MEET OUR VISION. DURING 2019 KPHA COMPLETED MULTIPLE PROJECTS, MOST NOTABLY: UPDATED OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, INCORPORATED PUBLIC HEALTH 3.0 CONCEPTS THROUGHOUT THE AGENDA AT KPHA'S ANNUAL CONFERENCE, SUPPORTED THE WORK OF STATE-WIDE TOBACCO PREVENTION AND CESSATION PROGRAMS AND ADOPTED THE KANSAS TOBACCO GUIDELINE FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CARE, DETERMINED A MARKETING PLAN FOR PROVIDING RESOURCES, INFORMATION ON GRANT OPPORTUNITIES, AND INFORMATION ON EVIDENCE BASED PRACTICES TO HELP OUR LOCAL PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AND CRITICAL STAKEHOLDERS IMPLEMENT AND SUSTAIN THE WORK ACROSS KANSAS COMMUNITIES.