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1600 Duke Street
Suite 440
Alexandria, VA 22314
703.778.4549
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Happy New Year! We anticipate an exciting 2010 as we continue to focus on the public health accreditation Beta Test and prepare for the national launch of the public health accreditation program in 2011. The Beta Test sites continue to successfully and enthusiastically work through the process to test the accreditation standards and measures. We have learned a great deal from them, and are grateful for their participation and input.
We kicked off the year with a PHAB Board Meeting, and welcomed the valuable and strategic input from our accomplished Board members and partners who participated.
This month, we are also focused on securing senior-level site visitors to participate in the Beta Test. We thank all interested individuals for their applications, and encourage senior-level health officials in state and local health departments to be an invaluable part of the accreditation process by submitting applications. We would like to increase our applicant pool in this area, and have extended the application deadline to February 5, 2010 just for senior health officials.
And don't forget that we have posted the first three Beta Test documents for public review and comment. We encourage all public health professionals to provide us with comments via the feedback system available through the PHAB website. Your feedback is essential to ensuring that the accreditation program is effective and successful.
As always, many thanks to our partners and supporters. We look forward to working in partnership with you through 2010 and beyond.
Kaye Bender, PhD, RN, FAAN
PHAB President & CEO
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January 2010 PHAB Board Meeting |
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The January PHAB Board meeting was held at the Fearrington House in Pittsboro, NC, on January 20-22. We were treated to a great presentation by Aleena Hernandez who guided us through Tribal Public Health "101", and reported on the NIHB Tribal Public Health Capacity Assessment and the Tribal Public Health Think Tank. Board members Bud Nicola, Judy Monroe, and Bill Riley led discussions on the Beta Test, the Fees and Incentives Workgroup, and the Research and Evaluation Committee, respectively. Jan Malcolm presented on the work of the Accreditation Coalition and Board member, Leah Devlin, talked about technical assistance for health departments applying for accreditation. Aleena Hernandez represented the constituent organizations in talking about the technical assistance being provided by ASTHO, NACCHO, NALBOH, and NIHB.
On the evening of the 21st, the North Carolina Institute for Public Health welcomed Board members to the Carolina Inn on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Presentations highlighted the history of accreditation in NC.
Aleena Hernandez with the National Indian Health Board (NIHB)
PHAB Board of Directors |
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Beta Test Update |
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The PHAB Beta Test continues to progress as the 30 Beta Test sites provide feedback on the accreditation standards, measures, and processes. Recently, the Beta Test sites have been working on completing online applications, conducting self-assessments, and uploading the documentation necessary to demonstrate how they are meeting each measure. The Best Test sites will soon start preparing for their site visits, which will take place this spring. You can learn more about the Beta Test at the PHAB website. |
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We Need Your Feedback! |
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PHAB reminds you to please review the Beta Test documents and submit feedback. The online, user-friendly feedback system is available through the PHAB website. PHAB encourages all public health professionals to use this system, as your thoughts and suggestions will help to refine the documents prior to the national program launch in 2011. The first three documents ready for review are the Guide to Accreditation, the Readiness Checklist, and the Statement of Intent, and more documents will be posted in the coming weeks. Read them and provide your feedback online. |
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Governance Think Tank (February 23, 2010) |
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PHAB is partnering with the National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH) to hold a Governance Think Tank on February 23, 2010 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. The purpose of this Think Tank is to recommend strategies that will strengthen the PHAB standards related to governance, and help define the governance role in accreditation and quality improvement processes.
Boards of health and other public health governing entities are a critical component of the accreditation process for local, state, territorial, and tribal health agencies. NALBOH will gather input from Beta Test sites, NALBOH Board of Directors, NALBOH members, SALBOH representatives, and other partners through the Think Tank to help inform the accreditation process and identify needed communication and training gaps. Look for more information as this work continues! |
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PHAB's First Student |
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 One of PHAB's goals is to foster public health education by offering opportunities for students to work with the PHAB staff as we develop the national public health accreditation program. Our first student, Richard Ingram, is a doctoral student at the University of Kentucky School of Public Health. Richard is working with PHAB on developing incentives for other students to conduct some of their educational activities with PHAB. He is also working on the template reporting mechanism for the Think Tank reports to the Board of Directors. PHAB is pleased to have Richard Ingram working with us in this capacity as our inaugural student!
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