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2008 Public Health Action Plan Update: Celebrating Our First Five YearsImplementation Groups' Selected Priority Actions 2008–2009During the National Forum’s review and update of A Public Health Action Plan to Prevent Heart Disease and Stroke, each of the seven Implementation Groups proposed priorities for 2008–2009. These priorities are listed at the end of each Group’s recommendations and action steps. Below is a summary of these priorities. Next year, the National Forum will move forward with a number of activities based on the priorities proposed by the Implementation Groups. In addition, the National Forum will also explore ways to address selected policy issues and the impact of sodium intake on cardiovascular disease. 1. Communications Implementation GroupMISSION To effectively communicate the urgency and importance of preventing heart disease and stroke through a long-term strategy of public information and education. RECOMMENDATION The urgency and promise of preventing heart disease and stroke and their precursors (i.e., atherosclerosis, high blood pressure, and their risk factors and determinants) must be communicated effectively by the public health community through a new long-term strategy of public information and education. This new strategy must engage policy makers and other stakeholders at the global, national, state and local levels. As a matter of emphasis, special consideration must be paid to those most at risk. Communication strategies should utilize the most current forms of available technology as well as those communications devices that are accessible in various communities in the U.S and globally. Action Step: Assess requirements for effective messages. Set the agenda for a long-term, national public information strategy that conveys the importance and feasibility of prevention. Craft clear and compelling messages that capture public attention, help people understand cardiovascular health (CVH) and its risks, and support healthy behavioral changes. Include a social marketing strategy to identify audiences, develop effective national messages, and determine media avenues (e.g., peer-reviewed journals, CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, community report cards). Communicate consistent CVH information and messages to the public, health professionals, and policy makers.
2. Public Health Leadership and Partnership Implementation GroupMISSION To foster effective leadership and partnership for preventing heart disease and stroke. RECOMMENDATION The nation’s public health agencies, their partners, and the public must provide the necessary leadership for a comprehensive public health strategy to prevent heart disease and stroke. Action Step: Establish and improve partnerships to develop, implement, and evaluate plans to address heart disease and stroke.
Action Step: Educate key decision makers to support heart disease and stroke prevention policies and programs.
3. Action Priorities Implementation GroupMISSION To identify effective policies in cardiovascular health (CVH) promotion and cardiovascular disease prevention at the national, state, and local levels to ensure effective public health action against heart disease and stroke. RECOMMENDATION Initiate policy development in CVH promotion and CVD prevention at national, state, and local levels to assure effective public health action against heart disease and stroke. In addition, evaluate policies in non-health sectors (e.g., education, agriculture, transportation, community planning) for their potential impact on health, especially with respect to CVD. Action Step: Develop, implement, and update annually an advocacy plan for the APIG priority policies (Prevention of Risk Factors, Chain of survival, Quality-of-Care, Disparities, Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention programs in all 50 states).
4. Organizational Capacity Implementation GroupMISSION To build the capacity of federal, state, and local public health agencies, including laboratories, to address heart disease and stroke as a priority within a strong chronic disease prevention effort and to develop the needed competencies and resources. RECOMMENDATION Facilitate and promote training resources to develop and maintain appropriately trained public health workforces at national, state, and local levels. These workforces should have all necessary competencies to bring about policy, environmental, and systems changes and implement programs to improve CVH and decrease the heart disease and stroke burden, including laboratory requirements. Action Step: Utilize the National Forum’s Web site and links to other appropriate Web sites to establish a clearinghouse for training opportunities and other resources related to the assessment and improvement of program capacity and competencies, and voluntary accreditation related to heart disease and stroke prevention. This will include the identification and sharing of best practices and state success stories.
RECOMMENDATION Identify, develop and disseminate model performance standards and core competencies in HDSP for national, state, and local public health agencies, including their laboratories. Action Step: Facilitate development and dissemination of performance standards and core competencies for public health agencies and partners. Promote ongoing access to technical assistance, laboratory and clinical practice guidelines and performance standards for laboratory testing and standardization, and consultation to state and local health agencies, laboratories and partners for HDSP. Share performance standards and cultural competency guidelines with schools of public health and other educational sources for health professionals and encourage their adoption in curricula.
5. Monitoring and Evaluation Implementation GroupMISSION To monitor the burden of heart disease and stroke and measure progress in the prevention and treatment of heart disease and stroke by
RECOMMENDATION Enhance the public health infrastructure, build personnel competencies, and facilitate the development and effective use of communication mechanisms so that federal, state, and local public health agencies can disseminate and use surveillance and evaluation results in a timely and effective manner. Action Step: Provide guidance to state and local health agencies and partners regarding capacity requirements for surveillance and evaluation activities.
Action Step: Establish resources to support program evaluation and surveillance through training, consultation, technical assistance, and partnerships to develop logic models, methodology, data collection, and reporting.
6. Policy Research Implementation GroupMISSION To develop a comprehensive policy research agenda, foster translating this research into practice, and investigate relevant economic models. RECOMMENDATION Conduct and facilitate research with partners to identify new policy, environmental, social, and economic priorities for CVH promotion; determine the appropriate methods for translation and dissemination of knowledge; and, fund research to identify best practices for effective interventions to translate science into practice. Action Step: Develop an expert workshop on economics of heart disease and stroke prevention in order to develop an economics and policy research agenda to inform public health and systems change in prevention, detection, and management of cardiovascular risk factors. Include experts in health economics, health policy research, heart disease and stroke, and public health.
7. Regional and Global Collaboration Implementation GroupMISSION To engage regional and global partners to mobilize resources in heart disease and stroke prevention and treatment. RECOMMENDATION Engage with regional and global partners to mobilize resources in CVH promotion and CVD prevention and establish or strengthen liaison with partners identified in these recommendations. Action Step: Inventory existing and potential partners for global CVH collaboration, with support from public health agencies and other partners. Include governmental agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and foundations (e.g., especially the World Health Organization, World Heart Federation, and World Bank).
RECOMMENDATION Strengthen global capacity to develop, implement, and evaluate policy and program interventions to prevent and control heart disease and stroke. Involve all relevant parties—governmental and nongovernmental, public and private, and traditional and nontraditional partners—in a systematic and strategic approach. Action Step: Develop tailored programs to disseminate evidence-based and promising programs and models that 1) assist and support decision makers interested in developing and implementing effective national policies, 2) develop methodology and tools to analyze the health impact of policy interventions, and 3) analyze the social and economic costs of heart disease and stroke and the benefits of preventing them.
Page last reviewed:
August 18, 2008 |
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