Primary care and public health integration: Innovative strategies from a state-level review
In a recent Journal of Public Health Management & Practice report, Strengthening Public Health Through Primary Care and Public Health Collaboration: Innovative State Approaches, CHRT’s Nancy M. Baum and Samantha Iovan, along with Marianne Udow-Phillips, explore the dynamic initiatives undertaken by four states to forge stronger connections between public health and primary care.
Seventeen state leaders from North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington participated in semistructured interviews focusing on innovative strategies to promote collaboration between primary care, public health, and community-based organizations.
“States are engaged in creative approaches to collaboration between public health and primary care,” the authors observe. “Collaboration between primary care, public health, and community-based organizations is an opportunity to strengthen public health systems while staying focused on improving the public’s health.”
Their review showcases three actions that form the foundation of successful integration through well-resourced medical care systems. The JPHMP article expands on the innovative approaches these states are taking to enhance public health systems.