APHA: Message from the Chair: Moving From Commitment to Action….the 2004 APHA Annual Meeting and More


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Title: Message from the Chair: Moving From Commitment to Action….the 2004 APHA Annual Meeting and More

Author:

Section/SPIG: Health Administration

Issue Date:


Jon Thompson

Dear HAS Members,

In the past two newsletters, I have addressed the issues of strengthening your commitment to and involvement in the Health Administration Section and to APHA overall, and the need to focus on the “public” in public health—be it external or internal publics--in the best ways you can. As we approach the 2004 APHA Annual Meeting, let me reflect on the some of the accomplishments of our HAS Committees in the past few months, and express my thanks to all of you who are involved in Section activities.

The HAS Program at the Annual Meeting is arguably one of the most visible, informative and section-building activities of the HAS Section during the year. Under the leadership of Diane Adams and Polly Turner, our Program Planning Committee has established an excellent program complete with invited and contributed sessions on a wide range of important topics. It takes a tremendous amount of effort, coordination, perseverance and long hours to make the HAS program at the Annual Meeting a reality, and our deep appreciation and thanks go to Diane, Polly and the Program Planning Committee for their excellent work on this year’s program.

Our Membership Committee, under the leadership of Audrey Smith and Linda Moore, has identified ways to reach new members and involve the Section in mentoring students as well as new members. The committee will also be instrumental in managing our Section’s booth activities at the Annual Meeting. Thanks to them and their committee for excellent initiatives in meeting the individual needs of our members.

The Web and IT Committee, under the guidance of Laura Larsson and Jorg Westermann, has developed ways to expand our communication linkages through our Web site, newsletters and other means. The committee has also developed ways to identify the expertise of our members and bring that expertise to bear on addressing the needs of the section, APHA and the health services industry as a whole. Also, Laura has done an excellent job in developing and maintaining our section newsletter. Thank you for a job well done.

The Strategic Planning and Implementation Committee, under the direction of Tricia Todd, has provided a major coordination role in helping HAS shape a future vision, but more importantly, helping the Section focus on ways to operationalize that vision through specific action steps. One of the committee’s key activities is to coordinate the updating of the HAS Operating Manual to make it current and incorporate a means to translate operational policy into action. Thanks to this committee for their dedicated efforts.

And finally, the Policy Committee under the leadership of Michael Smiley, the Linkages Committee under the leadership of Bud Nicola, the Nominations Committee under the leadership of Joyce Gaufin, and the Awards Committee under the leadership of Marcia Levy Rosenstein, have been instrumental in coordinating reviews of existing and proposed APHA policies, developing linkages with organizations to position HAS for successful, long-term relationships, coordinating the section’s nominations process for HAS leadership, and determining the Section’s Awards winners for this year, respectively. I would also like to acknowledge the dedicated efforts of Laurie Fitts in her role as Secretary for the Section this year. Thanks to all these leaders and their committees for their hard work on behalf on the section.

The above examples show how commitment is translated into action for the good of the Section. (Please note that there are many others active in the Section whom I cannot mention in this short column that have done so much for the section and I applaud all of your efforts and thank you for your energy, talent and wisdom). Please plan to come to the Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., this November, attend the scientific sessions, section business meetings and awards ceremony/social, and renew your commitment to and involvement in Section activities for the future.