Title: Chair's Corner
Author:
Section/SPIG: Aging & Public Health
Issue Date:
The past: What a year! APHA focused on Health and Aging for it’s annual National Public Health Week (www.apha.org/nphw/05-letter.htm), spreading the word about the issue through national publicity and local events. Several of our Section’s members are slated to be delegates to the decennial White House Conference on Aging (www.whcoa.gov/) that will happen in December, and many more participated in mini-conferences and listening events during the year as part of the planning process. The Section and the APHA Task Force on Aging have been active in policy issues, both internal to APHA and in Congress. Medicaid reform and the new Medicare Part D prescription coverage are hot national policy issues of particular concern (www.apha.org/legislative/). And a number of active GHS Section members wrote articles that have recently appeared in the American Society on Aging’s journal Generations that published a theme issue on Public Health and Aging (www.generationsjournal.org/generations/gen29-2/home.cfm). Thanks to the generosity of the Archstone Foundation, all GHS Section members have been sent a complimentary copy of that issue.
The present: The capstone effort of the Section is the annual meeting, which was blown by hurricane Katrina from New Orleans in November to Philadelphia in December (www.apha.org/meetings/). Other articles in this issue highlight our interesting scientific program, our esteemed awards session, our entertaining and tasty reception/silent+live auction, not to mention the networking opportunities at our business meeting. I know the change of dates creates conflicts for many, and the change of venue was discouraging as well, but I hope everyone who can attends the Annual Meeting. As a small section, GHS provides a friendly intimate home within a large conference setting. Many of us only get to see each other once a year at this event, so please try and join us!
The future: This is my last newsletter column as I retire in December as Chair and move to emeritus/past chair status. I want to thank all of the different Section members who contributed time, ideas, money, contacts, auction items, and enthusiasm during the past two years while I was chair. It was an enjoyable experience –- and administration is usually one of my less pleasant responsibilities! Please welcome Bob Burke from GWU as chair for 2005-07. I know he’ll keep the Section moving forward. Newly elected officers are also listed in this newsletter. Thanks again for your involvement in the Section.
Steven P. Wallace, PhD
GHS Section Chair 2003-05
Professor, UCLA School of Public Health
Assoc. Director, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research