This is Governmental Public Health
Thank you, governmental public health!
Your dedication, expertise, and commitment to healthier communities inspire our teaching, research, and service. You turn evidence into action, protect people every day, and make public health real in communities across the country.
The Work That Matters
Governmental public health is the people who work in federal, state, Tribal, local, and territorial health agencies and jurisdictions.
They are civil servants—professionals who have chosen careers in service to the health and well-being of the people and communities they serve. They bring expertise from across public health and many other disciplines to work that often happens behind the scenes but touches nearly every part of our lives.
They monitor and prevent disease, protect communities from health threats, prepare for and respond to emergencies, promote healthier environments, translate evidence into action, and build the programs, policies, and systems that help people live healthier lives. Their work is as broad and diverse as the communities they serve, but their purpose is shared: protecting and improving the public’s health.
The governmental public health system in the United States is a complex, interconnected ecosystem of federal, state, local, Tribal, and territorial public health authorities. Each operates within its respective jurisdiction, exercising distinct authorities and responsibilities while sharing a common mission to protect and improve public health. Together, these governmental entities coordinate policies, programs, resources, and services to prevent disease, respond to public health threats, and promote the health and well-being of communities nationwide.
Federal
Establishes national public health priorities, coordinates federal initiatives, and provides funding, guidance, and technical assistance.
State
Establishes statewide public health policies, coordinates activities across jurisdictions, and supports local health departments.
Tribal
Exercises sovereign public health authority, establishes health policies, and services to protect Tribal communities.
Local
Administers community public health services, implements prevention programs, and responds to health needs in its jurisdiction.
Territorial
Establishes territory-wide public health policies, administers public health programs, and coordinates health protection efforts.
What does the governmental public health workforce actually do?
Explore the 2024 Governmental Public Health Job Task Analysis to see the work, responsibilities, and skills that define governmental public health practice today.
Preparing the Workforce
A strong governmental public health workforce starts long before someone’s first day on the job. It requires preparing students for the realities of governmental public health practice, creating meaningful pathways into the workforce, and helping public health agencies recruit and retain the people they need.
ASPPH works with partners across academia and governmental public health to strengthen every part of that pathway.
Preparing Students to Work in Governmental Public Health
Schools and programs of public health play an essential role in preparing the next generation of governmental public health professionals. ASPPH provides resources designed specifically to help academic institutions connect education for public health with the knowledge, skills, and realities of working in governmental public health.
COMING THIS MONTH
Creating Pathways into Governmental Public Health
Preparation also happens through experience. ASPPH offers practicums and fellowships for students and graduates to learn alongside the governmental public health workforce, apply their academic preparation to real public health challenges, and build the skills and relationships that support careers in public service.
Recruiting and Retaining the Workforce
ASPPH partnered with the Public Health Foundation (PHF) to further enhance its Recruitment and Retention Toolkit by curating a comprehensive collection of targeted training resources. These resources have been carefully aligned with the job domains and tasks in the 2024 Governmental Public Health Job Task Analysis.
Where Academia and Practice Meet
The challenges facing public health are too complex for any one organization or sector to solve alone. Strong, sustained partnerships between governmental public health agencies and jurisdictions and schools and programs of public health bring together different perspectives, expertise, resources, and ways of knowing.
The strongest academic–practice partnerships are bi-directional. Governmental public health agencies and jurisdictions help academia understand the realities, priorities, and evolving needs of practice. Academic institutions bring students, faculty, and other resources that can help agencies address real-world public health challenges.
When those relationships are built intentionally and sustained over time, both sides are stronger—and so is public health.
Building Stronger Partnerships
ASPPH works with governmental public health and academic partners to better understand what effective, mutually beneficial partnerships require and to develop practical approaches for building and sustaining them.
Find an Academic Partner
Governmental public health agencies can use ASPPH’s Find an Academic Partner tool to connect with schools and programs of public health and identify contacts in practice, continuing education, career services, and library services.
Tell a Friend in Governmental Public Health that You Appreciate Them!
Spread the appreciation! Download a postcard PDF and attach it to an email to thank a governmental public health worker for all they do.
