2018 Public Health Informatics Conference

Event Details
Type: 
Conference
Date: 
August 19, 2018 (All day) - August 23, 2018 (All day)

It’s been nearly two years since National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) released its multi-article supplement, “Public Health Informatics: A Call to Action,” in the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice. Since then, it’s only become clearer that to effectively serve communities in today’s information-driven world, public health – and its cross-sector partners – must advance and strengthen its capability to transform data into action (e.g., services, interventions, and policies). But forging that capability is no easy feat.

Challenges such as underdeveloped information technology (IT) infrastructure, lack of training, and insufficient workforce capacity have made public health informatics seem either intimidating or vastly inaccessible to public health professionals. Despite this, there is a role for informatics within every health department. The 2018 PHI Conference exists to help you learn that role through sessions, workshops, and peer-sharing opportunities that:

  • Increase your understanding of the principles of informatics and the importance of leading with data and health information to improve community and population health;
  • Prepare you to integrate the principles of informatics into public health practice, based on your department, organization, or agency’s capacity; and,
  • Identify potential barriers to incorporating informatics and recommend how to address those through advocacy, workforce development, training and education, and peer sharing.

In order to improve community and population health, we have to invest in ourselves, our organizations, and our communities. Whether you are new to informatics or are well-versed in using data and technology to advance public health and healthcare, there will be something for everyone at the 2018 PHI Conference (August 20-23 in Atlanta, GA). Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn from your peers, hear from thought leaders, discover new solutions, and get inspired about how to “Connect Systems and People to Improve Population Health.”

With the plenary and town hall sessions set, we’re pleased to introduce you to the diverse set of plenary and town hall speakers who will provide a big-picture overview of how public health and its cross-sector partners are engaging in efforts to connect systems and people to improve population health.

Connecting People: Building and Strengthening Partnerships across Sectors
Tuesday, August 21 (8:00-10:00am)

Leveraging electronic data for population health improvement requires the engagement of public health practitioners and representatives from other critical sectors such as information technology, education, healthcare, law, law enforcement, business, academia, housing, social services, and transportation. Cultivating skills and partnerships among the workforce is essential for bridging distinct disciplines and catalyzing collaboration to respond to today’s challenges and opportunities, and prepare for those of tomorrow. This session will highlight how individuals from different agencies and companies have moved beyond the boundaries of their professions to harness electronic data from traditional and non-traditional sources and foster a healthier, more equitable society.

Town Hall: Key Principles Guiding CDC’s Public Health Data Strategy & IT Modernization Tuesday, August 21 (3:00-4:00pm)

This session will provide an opportunity for stakeholders and partners hear more about CDC’s Public Health Data Strategy and IT Modernization activities. Important to this session will be a discussion of the key principles guiding these related efforts and their ability to improve the use of data and technology as strategic assets that lead to more informed decisions and healthier lives.

Connecting Systems: Facilitating Electronic Information Exchange
Wednesday, August 22 (8:00-10:00am)

Technology has continued to drive innovation and the development of products that acquire, store, compute, and exchange vast amounts of electronic data with the potential to inform population health improvement efforts. Sharing and coalescing these data – particularly in an automated, interoperable, and secure manner – remains a work in progress, but novel approaches can offer insights on how separate data sources can join to facilitate electronic information exchange. This plenary will highlight existing and potential efforts to integrate technology and information systems with the ultimate intent of enhancing the delivery of public health programs and services.

Town Hall: Forging a Path to Interoperability with the Trusted Exchange Framework
Wednesday, August 22 (3:00-4:00pm)

The 21st Century Cures Act calls for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) to, “…develop or support a trusted exchange framework for trust policies and practices and for a common agreement for exchange between health information networks.” The draft Trusted Exchange Framework, released earlier this year, outlines the principles and minimum required terms and conditions for trusted exchange that enables greater interoperability. This town hall will provide an opportunity for stakeholders and partners to engage with the ONC about the draft Trusted Exchange Framework, including aims, current status, and stages of implementation.

Connecting Systems and People for the Future of Population Health: Where Do We Go From Here?
Thursday, August 23 (10:30am-12:00pm)

To advance population health, public health and its cross-sector partners must strengthen their ability to quickly and effectively gather and apply data to improve health outcomes. The closing plenary will highlight the critical role of public health in supporting population health and present a call to action for the field to: strengthen the informatics capabilities of the public health workforce; leverage data and build synergy with healthcare; and explore how public health informatics can become the enabler of health across the spectrum of care.

There’s something for everyone at the 2018 PHI Conference. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn from your peers, hear from thought leaders, discover new solutions, and get inspired about how to “Connect Systems and People to Improve Population Health.”

Open Health News sponsor HLN Consulting will have an extensive presence at this bi-annual CDC-sponsored conference including delivery of the following presentations:

  • Case Study for Cloud Computing Solutions in Public Health: Clinical Decision Support (Session E03, 8/21, 4:15pm ET)
  • Reportable Conditions Knowledge Management System (RCKMS): Developing Quality Decision Support in the Data Supply Chain for Public Health Surveillance [with CSTE] Session B01, 8/21, 10:30am ET)
  • A Collaborative Approach to Supporting Information System Migration Projects [with CDC, AIRA, & PHII] (Session G01, 8/22, 1:30pm ET)
  • Clinical Decision Support for Immunizations as a Community-drive, Standards-based Activity [with CDC & NYC] (Session H04, 8/22, 3pm ET)
  • Developing a Data Integration and Management System: Improving New York City’s Population Health Research and Surveillance [with NYC] (Session H07, 8/22, 3pm ET)
  • The Changing Face of Interoperability and its Impact on Public Health (Session K11, 8/23, 9:15am ET)
  • In addition to being an exhibitor at the conference, HLN will demonstrate some of its Open Source software as part of a HIMSS Interoperability Showcase that accompanies this event:

Immunization Use Case – ICE Immunization Evaluation and Forecasting System
Electronic Case Reporting Use Case – Reportable Conditions Knowledge Management System (RCKMS)