Category: Systems Thinking

Strategic Skill Area

The Science of Trust: Implications for Public Health Research and Practice

Course Objective

List key determinants of trust and trustworthiness at the community, population, and patient levels
Discuss the impact of trust and mistrust on behavioral and social outcomes as related to a variety of health topics
Describe implications of “the science of trust” for public health research and practice

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Date: March 7, 2023

Presenter:
Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL
Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Renata Schiavo presents on the importance of trust in public health research and practice. She begins by defining “trust” and explaining the importance of gaining trust among communities. Schiavo goes on to discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted trust and presents commonly used models of trust. “The science of trust” is then explained by the interconnected nature of biological, social, political and environmental factors, and a new model of trust is presented. Schiavo ends by suggesting implications for practice and next steps

Participants will learn about trust in public health research and practice from Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL, from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.Participants will be able to:-List key determinants of trust and trustworthiness at the community, population, and patient levels-Discuss the impact of trust and mistrust on behavioral and social outcomes as related to a variety of health topics-Describe implications of “the science of trust” for public health research and practiceRecommended Reading:-Renata Schiavo (2022) The ‘Science of Trust’: moving the field forward, Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 15:2, 75-77, DOI: 10.1080/17538068.2022.2089611https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17538068.2022.2089611-Renata Schiavo (Moderator and Roundtable Chair/Organizer), Gil Eyal (Participant), Rafael Obregon (Participant), Sandra C. Quinn (Participant), Helen Riess (Participant) & Nikita Boston-Fisher (Co-Organizer) (2022) The science of trust: future directions, research gaps, and implications for health and risk communication, Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 15:4, 245-259, DOI: 10.1080/17538068.2022.2121199https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17538068.2022.2121199

This program has been approved for 1.0 Category I Continuing Education Credit for CHES/MCHES by the Rutgers School of Public Health. The Rutgers School of Public Health is a certified CHES/MCHES provider by the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc.

This program has been approved for 1.0 Certified in Public Health (CPH) credit by the Region 2 Public Health Training Center. The Region 2 Public Health Training Center is a certified CPH provider by the National Board of Public Health Examiners.

Mortality surveillance using an Automated Mortality Syndromic Surveillance System (MortalSS) – Lessons Learned from New York City

Course Objective

Identify aberrations in time-series data.
Classify free text cause of death data into multiple ICD-10 code categories using Natural Language Processing (NLP).
Construct interactive html dashboards in R and RStudio.

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Date: February 7th, 2023

Presenter:
Alejandro F. Castro III, MPH
Mortality Surveillance Analyst,
New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYCDOHMH)

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Alejandro Castro III presents on mortality surveillance using an Automated Mortality Syndromic Surveillance System (MortalSS). He begins by explaining the importance of mortality surveillance in New York City and reviews the death registration process. He goes on to explain MortalSS, including time series analysis, model implementation, and interactive dashboards. He then discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted mortality surveillance in New York City and the potential future impact of MortalSS. Castro ends by explaining artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for ICD-10 cause of death coding.

Participants will be able to:

Identify aberrations in time-series data.
Classify free text cause of death data into multiple ICD-10 code categories using Natural Language Processing (NLP).
Construct interactive html dashboards in R and RStudio.

Policy Enactment and Implementation in the Policy Process and How Systems Thinking Fits In

Course Objective

Describe the steps and strategies needed to enact and implement a policy, program or service
Identify the kinds of individuals and organizations who can contribute to the enactment and implementation of policies, programs, and services
Explain the importance of monitoring the implementation of policies, programs, and services
Understand how applying habits of systems thinking can improve the enactment and implementation processes

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Date: June 30th, 2022

Subject Matter Experts:
Sylvia Pirani, MPH, MS
Public Health Practice Consultant
&
Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH (Public Health), MBA,
Assistant Professor at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health,
Associate Director of the Averting Maternal Death and Disability Program (AMDD) at Columbia University

The Strategic Skills Training Series developed by the Region 2 PHTC aims to help prepare public health leaders and the public health workforce to develop the practices and competencies associated with being a Chief Health Strategist. Using a scenario focused on the opioid problem in the fictitious ‘Tycho County’, this course will describe how the ‘Policy Enactment and Policy Implementation’ stages of the CDC policy process can be implemented by a health department using systems thinking tools and approaches.

Learners will be able to:

Describe the steps and strategies needed to enact and implement a policy, program or service
Identify the kinds of individuals and organizations who can contribute to the enactment and implementation of policies, programs, and services
Explain the importance of monitoring the implementation of policies, programs, and services
Understand how applying habits of systems thinking can improve the enactment and implementation processes

How to Recruit, Hire, Monitor and Train Community Health Workers: Guide for Local Health Departments

Course Objective

Describe the unique attributes of community health workers (CHWs)
List the core roles and competencies of CHWs
Define the importance of CHWs in driving public health improvements
Discuss ideas for integrating CHWs into public health departments

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Date: June 30th, 2022

Subject Matter Expert:
Saehee Lee, MPH, CHES
Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

This course developed by the Region 2 Public Health Training Center (PHTC) aims to describe the integral role that community health workers (CHWs) can play in public health departments. After illustrating their unique attributes and core roles, the course goes on to discuss ideas for integration into public health departments. The module is designed for local health departments, population and community health organizations, and other relevant organizations.

Learners will be able to:

Describe the unique attributes of community health workers (CHWs)
List the core roles and competencies of CHWs
Define the importance of CHWs in driving public health improvements
Discuss ideas for integrating CHWs into public health departments

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.

Policy Analysis in the Policy Process and How Systems Thinking Fits In

Course Objective

Define Stage Two of the CDC policy process i.e. Policy Analysis
List types of evidence that can be reviewed as part of the policy analysis phase
Assess feasibility of available policy options via framing questions and rubrics
Identify and define key variables in a complex public health issue
Sketch and interpret a simple systems map/ causal loop diagram
Define and identify leverage points in a system and assess their potential impact on the system
Discuss the importance of systems modeling and explore how systems models can be used to ask and answer policy-relevant questions

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Date: June 30th 2021

Subject Matter Experts:
Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH (Public Health), MBA
Assistant Professor at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, and Associate Director of the Averting Maternal Death and Disability Program (AMDD) at Columbia University

Sylvia Pirani, MPH, MS
Public Health Practice Consultant

Using a scenario focused on the opioid problem in the fictitious ‘Tycho County’, this course will describe how the ‘Policy Analysis’ stage of the CDC policy process can be implemented by a health department using systems thinking tools and approaches.

Recommended Pre-Requisites:

Participants will be able to:

Define Stage Two of the CDC policy process i.e. Policy Analysis
List types of evidence that can be reviewed as part of the policy analysis phase
Assess feasibility of available policy options via framing questions and rubrics
Identify and define key variables in a complex public health issue
Sketch and interpret a simple systems map/ causal loop diagram
Define and identify leverage points in a system and assess their potential impact on the system
Discuss the importance of systems modeling and explore how systems models can be used to ask and answer policy-relevant questions

Strategy and Policy Development in the Policy Process and How Systems Thinking Fits In

Course Objective

Define Stage Three of the CDC policy process i.e. Strategy and Policy Development
Describe the steps that Health Departments can follow to develop an enactment strategy and draft an actual policy
Understand how systems thinking tools can help strengthen the strategy and policy development process

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Date: June 30th 2021

Subject Matter Experts:
Sylvia Pirani, MPH, MS
Public Health Practice Consultant

Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH (Public Health), MBA
Assistant Professor at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health, and Associate Director of the Averting Maternal Death and Disability Program (AMDD) at Columbia University

Using a scenario focused on the opioid problem in the fictitious ‘Tycho County’, this course will describe how the ‘Strategy and Policy Development’ stage of the CDC policy process can be implemented by a health department using systems thinking tools and approaches.

Recommended Pre-Requisites:

Participants will be able to:

Define Stage Three of the CDC policy process i.e. Strategy and Policy Development
Describe the steps that Health Departments can follow to develop an enactment strategy and draft an actual policy
Understand how systems thinking tools can help strengthen the strategy and policy development process

Policy Making and Systems Thinking: tools to help the public health workforce address challenging times

Course Objective

Define policy making in public health and how it can be used to achieve public health goals
Identify how systems thinking can strengthen public health policy development
Discuss how some of the essential steps in policy making and systems thinking can help address “wicked” public health challenges

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Date: January 12th, 2021

Presenter:
Sylvia Pirani, MPH, MS
Public Health Practice Consultant

Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH, MBA
Assistant Professor
Population and Family Health
Columbia University Medical Center

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH, MBA, and Sylvia Pirani, MPH, MS, walk us through the process of policy making and the role of systems thinking in combating complex challenges. Sylvia starts by highlighting the steps required to craft good policy and emphasizes the importance of incorporating community members and stakeholders in the process. She then identifies some of the common obstacles seen during this process and shares instances of the same. Helen goes on to unpack the concept of systems thinking, explaining how it can be used and why it is such an essential tool for policy makers and the public health workforce. She demonstrates the ways in which systems thinking can be used to address complex situations and tricky relationships in the policy making process through a series of examples. Finally, they both identify the next steps in policy making and share useful resources for policy identification and systems thinking during challenging times.

Participants will be able to:

Define policy making in public health and how it can be used to achieve public health goals
Identify how systems thinking can strengthen public health policy development
Discuss how some of the essential steps in policy making and systems thinking can help address “wicked” public health challenges

Succession Planning and Change: Growing and Developing Talent in Public Health

Course Objective

Define “succession planning” for public health agencies
Explain the rationale for succession planning in public health
Identify the key elements of the succession planning process
Describe the link between change management and organizational succession planning
Explain the critical success factors for succession planning in public health

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Date: November 10, 2020

Presenter:
Emil J. Sadloch, MA
SADLOCH DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANTS

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Emil J. Sadloch, MA, highlights the importance of succession planning and why it is so relevant for public health today. While acknowledging the incredible contributions of public health officials during this pandemic, he underscores the aspects of leadership, change management and workforce resilience that enabled this. He goes on to discuss the necessary shift in focus needed to address the future of public health and how leaders can recover and adapt from times of crisis. Emil elaborates ways to strengthen the current workforce in preparation for new challenges, while simultaneously grooming the next generation for the same. He walks us through 10 important goals of succession planning and what the existing barriers look like. Lastly, he shows us how to create an effective succession planning system by walking us through crucial practices and providing us with important tips to develop future leaders.

Participants will be able to:

Define “succession planning” for public health agencies
Explain the rationale for succession planning in public health
Identify the key elements of the succession planning process
Describe the link between change management and organizational succession planning
Explain the critical success factors for succession planning in public health

Problem Identification in the Policy Process and How Systems Thinking Fits In

Course Objective

Explain Stage One of the policy making process i.e. Problem Identification
Describe how Systems Thinking tools and approaches can help visualize a problem
Describe how Systems Thinking tools and approaches can help define the boundaries of a problem

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Launch Date: June 30th, 2020

Subject Matter Expert:
Helen de Pinho, MBBCh, FCCH (Public Health), MBA
Assistant Professor at Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health,
Associate Director of the Averting Maternal Death and Disability Program (AMDD) at Columbia University

This training describes how to implement the first stage of the CDC policy process – Problem Identification. Using a scenario focused on the opioid problem in fictitious Tycho County, the course discusses the practical steps that a health department, working in collaboration with key stakeholders, can take to describe and understand this complex problem. The course also explores how the application of systems thinking tools and approaches to make boundary decisions and visualize the problem using behavior over time graphs and rich pictures, can strengthen this stage of the policy making process.

Participants will learn about the following:

Explain Stage One of the policy making process i.e. Problem Identification
Describe how Systems Thinking tools and approaches can help visualize a problem
Describe how Systems Thinking tools and approaches can help define the boundaries of a problem