Trust And Communication In Public Health Episodes

Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive for the State of Michigan and ASTHO member, highlights Michigan's Cyclospora outbreak and reflects on what can be learned from the state's response.

Chelsea Moriarty Coffield discusses the importance of collaboration in public health and shares strategies for building trust and health equity.

Christen Linke Young, cabinet secretary for the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, discusses the collaborative, cross-agency approach Delaware has built to address PFAS contamination and other environmental health concerns in the state.

On today's episode, the de Beaumont Foundation's Amanda Kwong discusses why effective public health communications go far beyond public awareness campaigns. Later, ASTHO's Ashley Nanthavongsa-Mosley highlights innovative efforts to introduce public health education into K-12 schools.

On today's episode, ASTHO's Kimberlee Wyche Etheridge highlights why workforce pathway programs, mentorship, and hands-on partnerships between universities and health departments are critical. Then, Brian Castrucci, president and CEO of the de Beaumont Foundation, discusses his recent article, focused on ways the public health field can communicate its impact.

What does the public health workforce need to stay engaged, supported, and committed, and how can leaders act on those insights? Heather Krasna, associate dean of career and professional development at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, joins us to break down new research on what younger public health workers value most at work.  She explains why flexible schedules, remote or hybrid options, professional development, student loan repayment, and family-friendly benefits are increasingly important for retention, and how agencies can think creatively when salary increases aren’t always possible. Then, Omar Khalid, director of workforce at ASTHO, walks through key findings from the 2024 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey (PH WINS), the only nationally representative survey of the governmental public health workforce.

ASTHO's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Susan Kansagra, joins us for a candid conversation about the state of public health today. She reflects on her unexpected path into the field, the urgent need to rebuild public trust, and why communicating the everyday value of public health is more critical than ever. Dr. Kansagra also explores how social media, new messengers, and emerging tools like AI can help reshape engagement, boost impact, and energize a workforce facing growing pressure. A motivating reminder that public health is a marathon, not a sprint, and that meaningful progress takes time, partnership, and persistence.

Jeffrey Eason, director of the Office of Communicable Diseases at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, explains how his department is working to prevent transmission of measles during the state's largest outbreak in 30 years; Dr. C. William Keck, former director of the Akron City Health Department and professor emeritus of community health sciences and family medicine at the Northeast Ohio Medical University, shares

Darcy Pickens, program coordinator for the office of suicide prevention at the California Department of Public Health, explains how the state’s “Never a Bother” youth suicide prevention campaign collaborated with youth to develop a campaign tailored to their needs; Courtney Dezendorf, director for the office of practice and learning at the Texas Department of State Health Services...

Dr. Joseph Kanter, ASTHO CEO, Dr. Susan Kansagra, ASTHO chief medical officer, Dr. Scott Harris, ASTHO president and state health Officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health, Dr. Ayanna Bennett, director of the District of Columbia Department of Health, and Dr. Manisha Juthani, ASTHO president-elect and commissioner for the Connecticut Department of Public Health, held a deskside briefing on the preparations for the upcoming respiratory virus season; Ericka McGowan, senior director of emerging infectious disease at ASTHO...

Dr. James Lewis, health officer for the Snohomish County Health Department in Washington State, explains how data can help quicken healthcare-assosciated infection response; Lyla Hunt, deputy director of public health and education at the New York State Office of Cannabis Management, tells us...

Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, epidemiologist and CEO of Your Local Epidemiologist, addresses the intersection between health and politics and provides words of encouragement to her fellow colleagues in public health; Grace Lee, senior analyst for infectious disease infrastructure and policy at ASTHO...

Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, epidemiologist and CEO of Your Local Epidemiologist, shares how her public health newsletter helps to educate readers about the policies and science impacting public health today; Tracy Gruber, executive director of the Utah Department of Health and Human Services...

Catherine Murphy, government affairs analyst at ASTHO, describes the impact of potential cuts to federally funded public health preparedness programs in a new Federal Health Policy Update; Monique Farmer, president of Avant Solutions, shares what she’ll be discussing in today’s ASTHO webinar on public health communication strategies...

Dr. Vanessa Coffman, Director of the Alliance to Stop Foodborne Illness, shares how the organization’s new Food Safety Culture Toolkit can help public health officials strengthen food safety efforts; Dr. Michelle Morse, Acting Commissioner for the New York City Health Department, explains how their new series, “Living with Long COVID,” is helping to educate New Yorkers about the illness; ASTHO will host a webinar on Thursday, July 24th, about effective communication strategies to enhance public health messaging; ASTHO has developed resources to help jurisdictions implement upstream policies that prevent adverse childhood experiences; and next Wednesday, July 23rd, the second session of the Accelerate series in ASTHO’s Ignite, Accelerate, and Activate online workshop will take place to discuss conflict and collaboration.

Dr. James McDonald, ASTHO member and commissioner of the New York State Department of Health, discusses the State’s Heat Risk and Illness Dashboard and how it can reduce heat-related injury; Dr. Tara Kirk Sell, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security...

Liz Hamel, vice president and director of public opinion and survey research at KFF, discusses the latest KFF Tracking Poll on Information and Trust; Tina Tan, state epidemiologist at the New Jersey Department of Health, tells us about the Protect Me With 3+ program...

Dr. Jerome Larkin, director of the Rhode Island Department of Health and an ASTHO Member, explains how his state achieved such impressive vaccination rates; Dr. Kimberlee Wyche-Etheridge, ASTHO's senior vice president of Health Initiatives...

Lindsey Myers, ASTHO vice president for Public Health Workforce and Infrastructure, discusses the need to bolster the public health workforce to better serve everyone; Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association,...

Dr. Marcus Plescia, ASTHO chief medical officer, is stepping away from ASTHO after seven years in the position; Dr. Scott Harris, state health officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health and ASTHO president, says the next few years are...

Dr. Tom Frieden, president and chief executive officer of Resolve to Save Lives, shares three steps he says are needed to rebuild trust in public health; Melissa Magstadt, secretary of Health for the South Dakota Department of Health and an ASTHO...