Public Health Informatics The emerging field of public health informatics is continually growing and gaining importance in public health practice. Public health informatics at the state and local level include projects to improve information management and flow in order to develop internal and external decisions. It can also be described as working to “getting the right information, to the right person, at the right time”. Informatics can help public health agencies create information systems they need to produce actionable information for public health interventions. Public health informaticians are often the link between public health programs and those who develop and maintain information systems. Examples of the technical aspects of public health informatics include workflow and business process analysis and applying information management principles to help achieve public health goals.
Applied Public Health Informatics Fellowship CDC in collaboration with CSTE, ASTHO and PHII The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in collaboration with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), the Association of State Health Officials (ASTHO), the Public Health Informatics Institute (PHII), and the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH), has established this Fellowship to train recent graduates in the expanding field of applied public health informatics. The goal of the Fellowship is to provide a high quality training experience and to secure long-term career placement for Fellows at the state or local level. Participating Fellows will receive one year of on-the-job training at a local or state health agency under the guidance of experienced mentors.
Program Mission To meet the nation’s increasing and urgent need for applied public health informatics workforce capacity in state and local health departments through a national fellowship-training program.
The fellowship will focus on these key concepts:
- Provide an accelerated training experience
- Strengthen capacity in applied public health informatics across public health institutions
- Provide service to the sponsoring agency
- Create and train a core group of public health workers
Applied Public Health Informatics Fellowship
The Fellowship is designed for doctoral or master level graduates in informatics or a related field who are interested in the practice of public health at the state or local level. While the program provides rigorous training for its participants, it is also designed with flexibility in order to meet the particular interests of the Fellow. Fellows are carefully matched to host agencies based on the career interests of the Fellow and available opportunities of the host agency. Program participants will develop a comprehensive set of core skills through applied competency-based training and experiences. At the end of the Fellowship, graduates will have an accelerated training in practical public health informatics. A stipend and other benefits will be available to Fellows and additional information is available.
Training
The Applied Public Health Informatics Fellowship offers an opportunity for graduates to acquire and develop public health informatics skills during a high quality, on-the job-training, program in public health practice. Fellows work closely with highly trained and experienced informaticists, epidemiologists and public health practitioners at the state and local level, as well as with those working at the federal level with the CDC.
Mentor and Host Health Agency
Each Applied Public Health Informatics Fellow is assigned to a designated host health agency and two highly trained and experienced mentors (primary and secondary mentors). Host health agencies are approved, with demonstrated capacity to provide a Fellow with technical training, applied research opportunities, and opportunities for experience in the application of public health informatics in a practical setting.