Title: Greetings From The Chair
Author:
Section/SPIG: International Health
Issue Date:
The International Health Section does not hibernate between APHA’s Annual Meetings, however, the pace of communications and planning definitely picks up as the Annual Meeting approaches. I hope to see many of you in San Francisco in November.
The IH Section has produced another impressive list of scientific sessions for the Annual Meeting program. Our thanks to Marty Makinen for his leadership in this Herculean effort. Previewing the program is now very easy by going online to <www.apha.org/meetings>. An online scheduler can help you plan your participation in the Meeting. I was impressed by the number of people involved in abstract reviews - a total of 120 volunteers were involved in this process.
We constantly encourage you to become engaged in the activities of the Section. One way to find out what is going on, and to look for ways that you can get involved, is to attend the Section’s special events at the Annual Meeting. Business meetings may sound boring to some of you, but attending them may actually lead to new opportunities. The contacts you make could even be good for your career health. See the list of scheduled meetings in this newsletter.
We are planning a better-than-ever Section party at our November 17th, 6:30 p.m. Social Hour and Awards Ceremony (session 342.0). Think of it as your professional “family reunion.” With the help of Tom Novotny of the UCSF Institute of Global Health, we will be gathering at the Thirsty Bear Brewing Company and Spanish Tapas Restaurant. We may not stuff you, but there will be real food, much more exciting than the usual conference peanuts and potato chips.
The Section will have a booth, # 1770, in the exhibit hall at the Annual Meeting. We will need volunteers to staff this booth. Feel free to use the booth as a meeting venue and hang out for international health types.
Many Section members have expressed interest in expanding our advocacy efforts. Our nearly 1,500 members could organize to be much more effective in advocacy. Let us know if you are interested. APHA’s Web site now includes a nifty advocacy resource. Go to <www.apha.org/legislative> and click on “Take Action.” It includes a wealth of tools and information that members can use to take action in support of public health. See the article in this newsletter on the advocacy work of the US Coalition for Child Survival.
Are you getting your money’s worth out of your APHA membership dues? One way to add value is to participate in IH Section activities throughout the year. This newsletter lists a good number of opportunities. If none of these appeals to your interests and passions, let us know what you are interested in, and we will try to fit it into the Section’s agenda and connect you with others who share your interests.
You should have the booklet entitled A Primer of APHA’s International Health Section and How To Get Involved. If you do not, let us know and we will send you a copy. You can also access it on our Section Web site, <www.apha-ih.org>. We would like more people to complete the “Response Form” that was circulated with the hardcopy Primer and is also available on our Web site. This is your way of telling the Section leaders how you would like to get involved.
We would like to see more regional international health groups. Read below about the new Washington, DC-area group led by Julie Hantman and Curt Swezy. We have already reported about such groups in the Seattle and San Francisco areas. There are enough IH Section members to launch similar IH clubs in New York, Boston, Atlanta, and Chapel Hill/Raleigh/Durham. Is anyone out there challenged to take the initiative?
Similarly, we would like to see more topical special interest groups within the Section. The Community-Based Primary Health Care working group has really taken off. This year their November 15th pre-conference workshop will qualify for Continuing Education Credits. See the announcement below. Michele Forzley has expressed interest in establishing a group on law and international health. See details below. If you’d like to connect with others interested in another particular subject, please let us know.
--Ray Martin, MPH, Phone: (703) 556-0123, E-mail: martinrs@aol.com