The Office of Health Promotion (OHP) is facilitating an advisory group of state and local public health education leaders to identify the best ways of advancing the practice of health education in Washington. The advisory group includes health education experts from 10 local health departments in eastern and western Washington and from seven major state programs. It grew out of the Office of Health Promotion’s efforts to identify training needs for state and local staff, to plan how to meet public health standards for prevention and community health promotion, and to recognize leadership in the profession. The group has met three times since February and discussed several key action areas for which they are detailing specific steps that public health agencies can take to improve their health education capacity.
The first project of the advisory group is to define the role of health education and health promotion in public health. They identified WSALPHO, public health executive management and human resource managers as the group that will primarily benefit from this definition, and they believe there are many others who will be able to use this information. Currently the group is describing what health educators do and articulating what they offer public health agencies.
We are excited about the possibilities this effort holds to advance the profession, and will keep you informed of the group’s recommendations.
Evidence-based prevention is a new buzzword in public health. It draws on many disciplines and research techniques to show what interventions, policies and programs are proven to be effective for communities or populations.
Dorothy Gist from the Office of Health Promotion at DOH recently attended a chronic disease conference and heard a presentation by Bill Baldyga from the University of Illinois on evidence-based prevention resources. He provided background on the developing field of evidence-based public health practice and a tool for finding recommended population-based prevention strategies on topics ranging from tobacco and oral health to diabetes and falls prevention.
We'd like to share this tool with you, find out if it is useful, and see if this kind of resource is something you think we should be providing through the H.E.R.E. web site.
The attached Word document has links to evidence-based web pages, and is divided into 3 columns. The left hand column gives the organization that has developed the web site. The middle column describes the site, and the right hand column lists the topic areas, such as tobacco prevention, for which you will find evidence-based recommendations. Some of these sites are in other countries where they are a bit ahead of us in this field. These web sites were developed by experts in evidence-based public health who have researched all the possible data on the topics that are provided. You don't need to do additional research on the recommendations they offer.
If you want more information on this tool or on how the recommendations are developed, please contact Bill Baldyga at bbaldyga@uic.edu. And please let us know if you found this helpful by sending an email message to HERE@doh.wa.gov.
Pat Wells is an avid health educator for the Environmental Health Division at the Spokane Regional Health District. She worked her way up through the public health ranks, starting as a receptionist in 1984. She got her BA degree from Eastern Washington University (31 years after graduating from high school, she notes) and also studied health education at Whitworth University. Pat is a Certified Health Education Specialist
(CHES).
She says when she started in environmental health, there weren’t many in the field with the title "educator." Pat was a founder of the Environmental Health Educator’s Network, which connects state and local public health leaders. She manages Spokane’s Lead Program, and has coordinated DOH/EPA Childhood Lead Screening, and a pilot program testing for blood lead in children at Spokane County WIC clinics. "I developed the District’s hand washing program and coined the phrase ‘hand washing ambassadors,’" she said. She has produced and designed a range of educational materials, from the Centennial Clean Water Grant materials for 13 counties in eastern Washington to a video on septic systems that is used in several local health agencies.
Pat is a strong advocate of community partnerships. She’s on the Board of Directors for Spokane Partners (bringing schools and businesses together) and represents the health district in a variety of partnership activities. Two of her proudest accomplishments include the county’s Youth Environmental Conference for students in grades 7-12, and Household Hazardous Waste Pickup for seniors and disabled citizens, which is a partnership of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program and Spokane Regional Solid Waste.
"I truly believe in public health, that knowledge is the key to prevention. And I have a soft spot for seniors, because I will soon be one," she said.
Pat believes future challenges for educators will continue to involve environmental justice, diversity and language. "We will need time and tools to make education available to everyone." Her advice to those entering the field is to build a network of colleagues around the state. "I wish I had had the Environmental Health Educator’s Network to plug into when I first began. I felt like I was blazing a trail all by myself." She acknowledges the encouragement of Environmental Health Directors David Swink in Spokane and Bruce Perkins in Benton-Franklin in establishing the network.
Pat is married to "a wonderful and kind man." Their blended family includes five grandchildren, with whom she spends a lot of time going to sports events and school programs. She and her husband are remodeling their 1905 home, complete with a "Serengeti Room"—a new sunroom decorated in an African motif. They love to travel and to snorkel—"under water is the most peaceful place in the world." She is also an avid gardener and reader, who always has a book at her side.
In addition to the topic areas she’s gained expertise in, Pat is willing to share her experiences on what works and doesn’t work in educational efforts with diverse groups. She believes giving strong presentations is important in health education, and can provide great tips for public speaking. She’s belonged to Toastmasters International for nine years, which she encourages others to join because they have a good support system. You can contact Pat Wells at 509-324-1546 or pwells@spokanecounty.org.
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ABCDE - Access to Baby and Child Dentistry Expanded ~ Spokane County This program trains family practice physicians and pediatricians to provide oral health preventive services in their offices for children up to age 19 who are covered by Medicaid. |
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Island County Syringe Exchange ~ Island County The health department’s HIV/AIDS program operates syringe exchange sites on Whidbey Island and offers referral to testing and treatment. |
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The Single Family Well: Flooding ~ Benton & Franklin Counties This brochure explains how wells become contaminated from floodwaters and what you can do to protect your water supply. |
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You Are Not Alone: A Guide to Safer Sex at the Turn of the Century ~ King County Gives "duhs" and don'ts for condom use. Describes the symptoms and treatments for STDs. |
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Women Take Charge of Your Sexual Health ~ King County Two-color brochure that lists how HIV/AIDS is and is not transmitted, plus HIV testing information. Describes five ways to lower your risk for HIV transmission. |
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Q & A about HIV and AIDS ~ King County 12-page brochure with detailed answers to common questions on HIV transmission, symptoms, prevention, testing and treatments. |
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Alternatives: Washington Toxics Coalition Fact Sheets ~ Washington Toxics Coalition This series of fact sheets gives information on handling a number of household toxic problems, such as paints and lead exposure, as well as least-harmful alternatives to pesticides for lawn care and weed management. |
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Tobacco Cessation Resources in King County ~ King County Lists where to find help for quitting and the health benefits you can expect. |
7th Annual National Prevention Symposium: "Empowering Our Youth, Helping All Youth Thrive in Uncertain
Times", Seattle, WA ~ July 31- August 2, 2002
Northwest Institute for Community Health Educators (NICHE), North Bend, WA ~ August 12-16, 2002
Working with Communities for Environmental Health, Satellite Broadcast~ September 12, 2002
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H.E.R.E.inWA Team
Office of Health Promotion
Washington State Department of Health
Theresa Fuller, Don Martin, and Jennifer Livingston
PO Box 47833
Olympia, WA 98504-7833
(360) 236-3736
HERE@doh.wa.gov