885: PHIG Funds PH Residency Program

SUMMER JOHNSON: 

This is the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition for Tuesday, April 15, 2025. I'm Summer Johnson. Now, today's news from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

JOHNSON: 

Today, another installment of the PHIG Impact Report, bringing you stories from health departments around the nation and how they use Public Health Infrastructure Grant funds to solve problems. This morning, we hear from Dr. Jamie Means, the workforce development director at the Metro Public Health department of Nashville and Davidson County.

Dr. Means thank you for joining us. Tell us about the ways your department has used PHIG.

JAMIE MEANS: 

The Metro Public Health Department of Nashville and Davidson County has benefited tremendously from the Public Health Infrastructure Grant. We have been able to use PHIG funding to recruit new public health employees, develop training opportunities for employees to improve their public health competency, and we've been able to retain staff through creating employee recognition awards and initiatives.

JOHNSON: 

It sounds like you've been busy. Are there any lessons learned that you can share?

MEANS: 

So, as a result of implementing the PHIG grant, we have really learned the lesson and importance of collaboration and maintaining relationships. This has been reinforced for us as we have worked with various offices across the department to implement and manage the grant over time, and also we have learned more about the federal grant process as it relates to expectations, budgeting, and reporting.

JOHNSON: 

What do you think has been the real impact on your department and your community?

MEANS: 

PHIG funding has supported the Metro Public Health Department of Nashville and Davidson County, also MPHD, in enhancing how we communicate with the community. We have been able to hire a cultural ambassador to help our non-English-speaking community members who visit our facilities to better understand the health information communicated to them and to support them in navigating the department and community resources. We have also been able to improve how we engage with the community members who are in need of behavioral health support; as we have been able to provide our behavioral health specialists with iPads so that they can educate the community on the services to them when they're out in the field. And then also, from an operational level, the opportunity to purchase new [...] scopes for our clinical services team, through PHIG, has allowed us to extend our screening and assessment of cervical health and illness for our community, giving us the opportunity to improve health outcomes for those who rely on us for these vital services.

JOHNSON: 

Of all the accomplishments, is there anything that stands out to you?

MEANS: 

Some of the most notable achievements we have obtained as a result of the PHIG grant include the establishment of the New to Public Health Residency Program in partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This partnership focuses on those who are new to the public health field, giving them a chance to learn the key foundational concepts associated with the field. It is also important when it comes to this project, to know that we have been able to graduate our first cohort of employees that includes six employees from the program, and we hope to continue to graduate more. Moreso, in addition to this opportunity, we have also been able to develop the Continuing Education Learning Series where employees can earn CE credits in-house. Those CE credits cover professionals within the dental, medical, pharmacy, public health, nutrition, and social work areas, to name a few. This effort was developed also in partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and our first session will occur on April 2 of 2025 at the Lentz public health center. And then from an infrastructure standpoint, we have been able to upgrade the technology within our meeting rooms in common areas to ensure that employees are able to host virtual and hybrid meetings and events efficiently and also have seamless internet access throughout the building. And lastly, another PHIG achievement includes digital kiosks located in the lobby at our main building that provides support to guests who need services or support navigating the facility.

JOHNSON: 

Dr. Means, thank you so much for the time and good luck as you continue your work.

You can learn about the Public Health Infrastructure Grant and the work that's underway by visiting the PHIG website. We have a link in the show notes.

That'll do it for today. We're back tomorrow morning with more ASTHO news and information. I'm Summer Johnson, you're listening to the award-winning Public Health Review Morning Edition. Have a great day.