Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Honored for Excellence in Public Health
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 26, 2011
Contact
Awais Vaid, Epidemiologist, (217) 531-5360
Amy Roberts, Public Relations
(217) 531-4264 /
Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Honored for Excellence in Public Health
Local Health Department Program is One of 41 Nationwide to Receive “Model Practice Award” in 2011
Champaign, IL – The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) was honored at the 2011 annual conference of the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), a body of peers, for developing and implementing a program that demonstrates exemplary and replicable qualities in response to a local public health need. “Real time advanced digital mapping to plan, identify, and respond to vaccination penetration rates” was one of 41 public health programs developed by a local health department selected from across the nation to receive NACCHO’s Model Practice Award.
CUPHD worked collaboratively with the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Geographic Information System and Spatial Analysis Lab to better plan, prepare for, and respond to the H1N1 pandemic using real time advanced digital mapping. This response involved development of maps and protocols to facilitate creation of real time visual maps and sharing of information for public health. For planning purposes, CUPHD developed local, accurate maps of schools and day care centers starting in Spring 2009. Following CDC (Center for Disease Control & Prevention) vaccine delivery recommendations, the vaccines were to be delivered first to target populations including kids nine years and under and pregnant women.
“We are proud to receive NACCHO’s Model Practice Award. The award is evidence of our commitment to developing responsive and innovative public health programs that improve the health of local residents,” said Julie Pryde, Administrator, CUPHD.
Each innovative project receiving the award was peer-reviewed (by other local health department professionals) and selected from a group of 130 applications. Since 2003, NACCHO’s Model Practice Awards program has honored initiatives—including programs, resources, and tools—that demonstrate how local health departments and their community partners can effectively collaborate to address local public health concerns. “Real time advanced digital mapping to plan, identify and respond to vaccination penetration rates” is now part of an online, searchable database of successful public health practices in areas ranging from immunization and maternal and child health to infectious diseases and emergency preparedness. The NACCHO Model Practice database allows users to benefit from colleagues' experiences, to learn what works, and to ensure that resources are used wisely on effective programs that have been implemented with good results. It also enables NACCHO to share information with key stakeholders and media about the good work being done by local health departments across the country.
This award puts the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District into special company—a select group of health departments that exemplify a forward thinking, proactive attitude toward protecting and promoting the health of communities across the nation.
For more information, please contact CUPHD at (217) 531-7961 or visit www.c-uphd.org. For more information about the NACCHO Model Practice Awards and to view a list of other award winners, go to www.naccho.org.
About the National Association of County and City Health Officials
The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) represents the nation's 2,800 local governmental health departments. These city, county, metropolitan, district, and tribal departments work every day to protect and promote health and wellbeing for all people in their communities.
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