Local Public Health Training Program Earns Model Practice Award.

An innovative workforce development program spearheaded by the Boston University School of Public Health was recently honored for excellence in public health by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO).

BUSPH’s Local Public Health Institute of Massachusetts (LPHI), established with funding from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, developed online training modules for local public health workers called “On Your Time.” Modules cover topics related to emergency preparedness capabilities, common local health program areas, and multiple competencies such as communications and legal issues. 

LPHI’s online offerings enable trainees to participate in training at a time and place convenient for them. Facilitator’s guides are also available for downloading, which allow LPHI to meet the training needs of a variety of audiences across Massachusetts. Twenty-five modules are currently posted with another ten in development.

According to the NACCHO reviewers, the online modules demonstrated exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need, reflected a strong local health department role with collaboration and innovation, and demonstrated value through evaluation.

Since 2003, NACCHO’s Model Practice Awards program has honored initiatives that demonstrate how local health departments and their community partners can effectively collaborate to address local public health concerns. NACCHO uses a body of peers to evaluate programs that demonstrates exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need.

In 2012, about 350 public health practitioners completed the online modules and earned a certficate of completion, said Kathleen Macvarish, a clinical assistant professor of environmental health who directs the community engagment and workforce development programs in the BUSPH Office of Public Health Practice. 

Since 2003, NACCHO’s Model Practice Awards program has honored initiatives that demonstrate how local health departments and their community partners can effectively collaborate to address local public health concerns. NACCHO uses peers to evaluate programs that demonstrates exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need.