Category: Public Health Science

Primary Competency Area

Question, Persuade, and Refer: Gatekeeper Training for Suicide Prevention

Course Objective

Define the scope and scale of suicide as a public health issue in the US
Describe the warning signs common to someone experiencing thoughts of suicide
List practical steps they can take if they have encountered someone experiencing current thoughts of suicide

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Date: November 1st, 2022

Presenter:
Garra Lloyd-Lester
Coordinator of Community and Coalition Initiatives
Suicide Prevention Center of New York

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Garra Lloyd-Lester presents on training for suicide prevention. He begins by describing the scope and scale of suicide in the US. He then explains sensitive and trauma-informed language, how to invite people to talk about suicide, and suicide clues and warning signs. Finally, Lloyd-Lester explains the Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) method for suicide prevention.

Participants will learn about the following:

Define the scope and scale of suicide as a public health issue in the US
Describe the warning signs common to someone experiencing thoughts of suicide
List practical steps they can take if they have encountered someone experiencing current thoughts of suicide

Monkeypox: Epidemiology, Clinical Features, Challenges and Opportunities

Course Objective

List key epidemiological features of the Monkeypox 2022 Outbreak
Describe stigma and disparities in relation to Monkeypox
Describe lessons learned from HIV and COVID-19 that should inform the monkeypox response

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Date: October 4th, 2022

Presenter:
Wafaa M. El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA
Executive Vice President, Columbia Global
University Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine at Columbia University
Director of ICAP at Columbia University

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Dr. Wafaa M. El-Sadr, Executive Vice President at Columbia Global, University Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine at Columbia University, and Director of ICAP at Columbia University, presents an update on the current Monkeypox outbreak. She begins by explaining the Monkeypox virus and the epidemiology of the current 2022 outbreak. She then explains its clinical characteristics, along with current vaccinations and treatment. Finally, Dr. El-Sadr discusses stigma and disparities surrounding Monkeypox, as well as lessons from HIV and COVID-19 that can inform the Monkeypox response.

Participants will be able to:

List key epidemiological features of the Monkeypox 2022 Outbreak
Describe stigma and disparities in relation to Monkeypox
Describe lessons learned from HIV and COVID-19 that should inform the monkeypox response

Gun Laws, Mental Illness and Stigma

Course Objective

Describe the development of gun laws as they relate to individuals with mental illness
Recognize the relationship between mental illness and violence
Explain the relationship between stigma and treatment participation, and the effects gun laws can have

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Date: August 2nd, 2022

Presenter:
Merrill Rotter, MD
Senior Forensic Advisor to the Commissioner, NYS OMH
Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, AECOM

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Dr. Merrill Rotter explores the connection between gun violence, gun laws, and mental health. He explains the relationship between mental health and guns, and how the stigma around mental health impacts gun legislation. He starts by reviewing a timeline of prominent gun legislation and instances of gun violence in the United States. Dr. Rotter then explains the efficacy of gun legislation as it relates to gun violence and mental illness. He concludes by discussing the impact of recent events regarding the gun debate in the United States.

Participants will be able to:

Describe the development of gun laws as they relate to individuals with mental illness
Recognize the relationship between mental illness and violence
Explain the relationship between stigma and treatment participation, and the effects gun laws can have

COVID-19: From Pandemic to Endemic

Course Objective

Differentiate between “Pandemic” and “Endemic,” with examples from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases
Describe examples from the HIV epidemic that may apply to the COVID-19 pandemic
Explain implications for public health practice as the field transitions from a pandemic to endemic response to COVID-19

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Date: April 5th, 2022

Presenter:
Dr. Jessica Justman
Associate Professor of Medicine in Epidemiology
Columbia University Irving Medical Center

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Dr. Jessica Justman, Associate Professor of Medicine in Epidemiology at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, goes over epidemiology concepts and skills as illustrated by the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. She starts by defining the terms epidemic, pandemic, and endemic as they relate to infectious diseases. She then explains how COVID-19 went from an outbreak to an epidemic, and reviews the progression and classification of epidemics. In addition to the example of COVID-19, she speaks to the toll and spread of other pandemics in history. In particular, she highlights the similarities between HIV and COVID-19 pandemics, including spread, overall burden and disparities, public health and community-driven responses, communication challenges, and issues of uncertainty and fear. Finally, she summarizes lessons learned from the progression and response to COVID-19, commenting on how we could have been better prepared.

Participants will be able to:

Differentiate between “Pandemic” and “Endemic,” with examples from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases
Describe examples from the HIV epidemic that may apply to the COVID-19 pandemic
Explain implications for public health practice as the field transitions from a pandemic to endemic response to COVID-19

Confronting Barriers to Vaccine Acceptance: The Role of Effective Communication

Course Objective

Discuss root causes of vaccine hesitancy and inequities among different groups
Describe the role of effective communication in promoting vaccine acceptance
Identify promising equity- and community-driven strategies to address barriers to vaccine acceptance during COVID-19 and beyond
Discuss examples, case studies, and action steps to strengthen local communication systems and promote vaccine acceptance

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Date: April 5th, 2022

Subject Matter Expert:
Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL
Senior Lecturer, Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University
Founder and Board President, Health Equity Initiative
Principal, Strategies for Equity and Communication Impact (SECI)

This course developed by the Region 2 Public Health Training Center (PHTC) focuses on the role of effective communication in confronting barriers to vaccine acceptance. It discusses root causes of vaccine hesitancy and inequities among different groups and describes the role of effective communication in addressing such root causes, including a focus on equity- and community-driven strategies during COVID-19 and beyond. It also provides an overview of examples, case studies, best practices, and action steps to strengthen local communication systems and promote vaccine acceptance among a variety of groups.

Participants will learn how to:

Discuss root causes of vaccine hesitancy and inequities among different groups
Describe the role of effective communication in promoting vaccine acceptance
Identify promising equity- and community-driven strategies to address barriers to vaccine acceptance during COVID-19 and beyond
Discuss examples, case studies, and action steps to strengthen local communication systems and promote vaccine acceptance

Developing and Implementing Climate and Health Adaptations: An Update from the NYSDOH BRACE Project

Course Objective

Describe the Building Resilience Against Climate Effects, or BRACE, framework for climate and health adaptation work.
Identify at least 3 resources for gaining knowledge about likely impacts of climate change on health in NYS.
Describe examples of climate and health adaptation-related activities that have been conducted in NYS.

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Date: March 1st, 2022

Presenter:
Neil Muscatiello, MS
Director, Bureau of Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology,
New York State Department of Health

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Neil Muscatiello, director of the NYSDOH Bureau of Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology reviews the importance and progress of the Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) framework for climate and health adaptation work in New York. He starts by contextualizing the human impact on climate and New York State projections, including warming trends and increased precipitations. He then explains how the BRACE model builds on evidence such as the climate impact assessments from ClimAID, which summarize observed and projected impacts across 8 sectors, and the county heat and health profile reports, which correlate temperature increases to poor health outcomes. He then traces the climate change adaptations steps, and goes over some example adaptations, such as the benefit analysis of heating and cooling assistance on hospitalizations, the Climate Smart Community certification. He ends by sharing information about regional climate and health adaptation workshops, additional resources, and answering attendees’ questions.

Participants will learn to:

Describe the Building Resilience Against Climate Effects, or BRACE, framework for climate and health adaptation work
Identify at least 3 resources for gaining knowledge about likely impacts of climate change on health in NYS.
Describe examples of climate and health adaptation-related activities that have been conducted in NYS.

Connecting the Dots With Systemic Thinking for Equitable and Healthiest Communities

Course Objective

Define key concepts, including: systems, systemic thinking, equity, social justice, and complexity.
Explain how systemic thinking links to existing frameworks for equitable and healthier communities.
Demonstrate use of two tools for exploring deep leverage points.

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Date: January 11th, 2022

Presenter:
Priti Irani, MSPH
Research Scientist
Office of Public Health Practice, New York State Department of Health

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Priti Irani, MSPH connects system thinking to the revised 10 Essential Public Health Services, which put health equity at the center. She begins by introducing the New York State Prevention Agenda, and defining key concepts of justice, systemic thinking, and targeted universalism. She then illustrates a concrete application of systems thinking by going through the example of food insecurity in New York State as a complex problem. She demonstrates how to use the iceberg model to look for hidden structures and mental models, as well as a causal loop diagram to find deep leverage points that guide interventions for greater impact. Finally, she shares additional online resources to continue the learning and application of systems thinking, and answer questions from live webinar participants, including incorporating paradigm shifts into different jobs.

Participants will be able to:

Define key concepts, including: systems, systemic thinking, equity, social justice, and complexity.
Explain how systemic thinking links to existing frameworks for equitable and healthier communities.
Demonstrate use of two tools for exploring deep leverage points.

Open Season on Ticks

Course Objective

List different tick species and what diseases they may transmit
Describe methods to reduce tick bites and identify symptoms of tick-borne disease
Identify ways to engage partners to help raise awareness and prevent tick-borne diseases in your community

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Date: November 9th 2021

Presenter:
Faith Lustik
Public Health Planner

Lisa Lagos
Public Health Educator

Jefferson County Public Health Service

In this month’s Log-In2Learn webinar, Lisa Lagos and Faith Lustik from the Jefferson County Public Health Service introduce the management of tick-borne disease from the perspectives of community education and planning. Lisa begins by reviewing the history of Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne disease, from its initial community identification to its known geographic and seasonal distribution today. She described tick-bite identification, Lyme disease symptoms and incubation period. She then introduces other tick-borne diseases, including anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, Babesiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Powassan virus disease. Individual techniques of protection are reviewed. Faith wraps up the presentation by focusing on stakeholder engagement. She explains how to use surveillance data to alert providers, and explains the importance of including students, outdoor workers and trail users in outreach.

Participants will be able to:

List different tick species and what diseases they may transmit
Describe methods to reduce tick bites and identify symptoms of tick-borne disease
Identify ways to engage partners to help raise awareness and prevent tick-borne diseases in your community

Managing NYC death reporting from the epicenter of a pandemic: COVID-19 in Spring 2020

Course Objective

Describe the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS)
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a death.
Describe the operational, and other, factors that make timely, accurate registration of death possible

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Date: October 5th, 2021

Presenter:
Gretchen Van Wye, PhD, MA
Assistant Commissioner & City Registrar
New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOHMH)
Bureau of Vital Statistics, Division of Epidemiology

In this month’s Log-in2Learn webinar, Gretchen Van Wye, PhD, MA, discusses the challenges and importance of increased death reporting during the COVID-19 pandemic. She begins by recognizing death registration both as a fundamental right of persons, as well as instrumental to monitoring disease outbreaks. She highlights the contextual obstacles of the beginning of the pandemic, which was marked by initial denial and limited testing, but followed a geometric progression and the corresponding response needed. She then explains how death registration works in New York City, and shares the NYDOHMH’s plan to respond to its increased need, including staff, system, policy, and data changes.

Participants will learn about the following:

Describe the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS)
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a death.
Describe the operational, and other, factors that make timely, accurate registration of death possible

Vital Records and Vital Statistics: The Backbone of Public Health in America

Course Objectives

Outline the history of civil registration in what is now known as the United States of America.
Identify the Constitutional, legislative, and regulatory foundations that govern the functioning of the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS).
Describe methods for accessing vital event data for research purposes
Analyze the forces that have made vital records important.
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a death.
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a birth
Explain the importance of records management to the maintenance of vital records and the operations of vital records offices.
Characterize the importance of the integrity of the information on birth and death certificates
Give reasons for the basic principles of vital records corrections and amendments.
Describe how vital statistics laws are modified in the United States.
Analyze frequently-proposed legislation.

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Date: March 2021

Presenter:
Gretchen Van Wye, PhD, MA
Assistant Commissioner and Registrar, Bureau of Vital Statistics,
New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

If you had to develop a public health intervention designed to protect basic human rights, connect your target population with upstream social determinants of health like education, housing, and income, and ensure that their existential drive to exist were acknowledged, a birth certificate just might be it. Invisible and mundane to most of the world, birth certificates – and death certificates, as well – document the stories how of humans come into and go out of this world. And, come and go they do. Vital records are the documents that catalog these experiences millions of times each year in the U.S., and vital statistics are the subset of the information on these records that public health students and professionals know and love.

This course focuses on the history, policy, management, and protection of vital records and vital statistics in the United States and will open learners’ eyes to the surprisingly fascinating world of vital events.

Learners who successfully complete this course will be able to:

Outline the history of civil registration in what is now known as the United States of America.
Identify the Constitutional, legislative, and regulatory foundations that govern the functioning of the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS).
Describe methods for accessing vital event data for research purposes
Analyze the forces that have made vital records important.
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a death.
Describe the process and parties involved in registering a birth
Explain the importance of records management to the maintenance of vital records and the operations of vital records offices.
Characterize the importance of the integrity of the information on birth and death certificates
Give reasons for the basic principles of vital records corrections and amendments.
Describe how vital statistics laws are modified in the United States.
Analyze frequently-proposed legislation.