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NPHP Press Releases
November 11, 2002
In a significant show of unity and forward
thinking, more than 30 leaders from museum and science centers
and public health organizations came together today to discuss
improving the nation’s health at the inaugural meeting
of the National Public Health Partnership (NPHP) held during
the American Public Health Association’s annual meeting
in Philadelphia.
With an estimated 16,000 U.S. museums and science
centers receiving more than 850 million visits per year,
more than all of the country’s professional baseball,
football, and basketball sporting events combined, and with
recent events driving increased public interest in health
issues at an equally rapid rate, never before has the need
for effective, informal public health education in museums
and science centers been more clear or compelling. The NPHP,
generously funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,
strives to bridge the gap between public health and informal
education in museum and science center settings by advancing
the quality of and capabilities to support public health
programming in museums and science centers.
Mohammad Akhter, MD, MPH, Executive Director
of APHA, and Georges Benjamin, MD, FACP, Incoming Executive
Director, welcomed the diverse group of museum and science
center and public health professionals to the NPHP Inaugural
Meeting and the 130th annual meeting of the APHA. In addressing
the importance of the Partnership, Akhter commented that "the
public health community has a lot of science on our side,
but translating that science in an interesting and innovative
way has been challenging. Museums and science centers are
skilled at taking complicated information and making it exciting,
understandable, and fun – this Partnership is truly
unique and has tremendous potential for the future of our
country."
In addition to APHA, the NPHP Inaugural Meeting
was headed by the American Association of Museums, the Association
of Science-Technology Centers, and the National Health Museum,
all of which serve as Conveners on behalf of the
Partnership. The additional museum and science centers and
public health organizations in attendance all serve on the
NPHP’s Steering Committee (click
here for a complete list of NPHP Partners).
In his welcoming comments to the group, Mark
Dunham, Acting President of the National Health Museum, said
that "the ultimate goal of the Partnership is to increase
the nation’s understanding of the crucial public health
issues that impact the American people every day by bringing
together national resource-rich public health organizations
with a large number of audience-rich community-based museums
and science centers."
The two-hour meeting included
formal presentations followed by a facilitated group discussion
that yielded numerous recommendations about the direction
that the Partnership should take. Representatives from
the museum and science center community shared examples of
previous
public health collaboratives and successful public health
exhibits and programs, while members of the public health
community talked about the importance of fusing the evidence-based
findings of public health with the innovative communication
technologies employed by museums and science centers.
The successful inaugural meeting was followed
by a reception where the NPHP Conveners signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MOU) that demonstrates their commitment
to work together to advance the mission of the NPHP. More
than 300 people attended the reception, including APHA’s
executive committee, senior leaders from The Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation, and a diverse group of public health
professionals. After signing the MOU, Akhter told the crowd
that "this Partnership is historic and APHA is thrilled
to offer our support towards its success".
Prior to the inaugural meeting, the National
Health Museum hosted a "Public Health 101" luncheon
for all the museum and science center leaders attending the
NPHP meeting. The idea for the session sprung from the NPHP
discussion that was held during the Association of Science-Technology
Center’s annual meeting in October 2002 where several
museum and science center leaders expressed interest in a
basic tutorial about public health.
Nancy Persily, MPH, Assistant Provost, University
at Albany, SUNY and Associate Dean, School of Public Health,
conducted the "Public Health 101" luncheon session
and prepared a presentation that covered basic public health
concepts, such as population based public health practice,
great public health achievements, and current issues in public
health and associated case studies, including bioterrorism
and violence prevention. The presentation was followed by
a thoughtful discussion where the challenge of balancing
museums and science centers roles’ as information disseminators
and educators with the advocacy and behavioral change roles
often adopted by public health organizations was debated.
For more information about the National Public
Health Partnership, click
here, or contact Claudia
Menashe, Project Director, National Public Health Partnership.
Mohammad Akhter, MD,
MPH, Executive Director, APHA and Fitzhugh Mullan,
MD, Vice Chairman, NHM Board of Trustees. |
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Anne Lubenow, Health
Communications Specialist, National Cancer Institute
and David Ramsey, MPH, CHES, Associate Director,
Health Promotion at Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention participate in the NHM exhibitor's
workshop at APHA's annual meeting. |
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Sonbol A. Shahid-Salles,
NPHP Intern, in front of NHM’s exhibit
booth at the Public Health Expo during APHA’s
annual meeting in Philadelphia. |
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As Conveners of
the NPHP, Mohammad Akhter, MD, MPH, Executive
Director, APHA, and Mark Dunham, Acting President,
NHM, sign a Memorandum of Understanding at the
NPHP Reception held during APHA's annual meeting. |
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