Thousands of people around the nation joined the movement for a healthier America in April, participating in hundreds of events held in celebration of National Public Health Week.
Stretching from April 2–8, the 17th annual National Public Health Week aimed to make Americans more aware of what they can do to make themselves and their communities healthier.
U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin poses with participants at a National Public Health Week walk in Denver in April.
Photo courtesy Kimberly Moore, APHA
Organized by APHA, the 2012 celebration of National Public Health Week brought together health departments, organizations, students and community leaders to heighten awareness of the many small things that can improve community health.
In Edison, N.J., a show of support for National Public Health Week.
“We really want people to take ownership of this effort,” said APHA Executive Director Georges Benjamin, MD, FACP, FACEP (E). “This is a way for people to take a look at their communities and see what can be done to make life better and healthier. Maybe it means lobbying for a new bike path, or for smoke-free policies in parks. Whatever it is, people can take real steps to improve health right where they live.”
From left, APHA’s Georges Benjamin, Linda Degutis of CDC and Kevin Swartout, PhD, an assistant professor at Georgia State University, at an event in Atlanta at Emory University.
Photo by Charlotte Tucker
The week was divided into daily themes including active living and healthy eating; alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; communicable diseases; reproductive and sexual health; and mental and emotional well-being. Each day, participants were encouraged to examine their communities through that day’s theme and to look at where improvements could be made. On Wednesday, April 4, communicable diseases day, for example, people were encouraged to learn proper hand-washing and food preparation habits.
APHA’s Georges Benjamin and Surgeon General Regina Benjamin at a Denver event.
Photo courtesy Kimberly Moore, APHA
Once again, APHA took to the road for a National Public Health Week Road Tour event.
The tour kicked off in Atlanta with a panel discussion on the impact of alcohol use on injuries and violence. Before an audience at Emory University, panelists — including Benjamin and APHA member and former Association President Linda Degutis, DrPH, MSN, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control — discussed studies about the role alcohol plays in aggression.
Benjamin also traveled to Denver April 4, where he participated in a walk with U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA, before heading to Baltimore April 6 for a discussion of mental health, equity and substance abuse.
APHA also hosted a Twitter chat in which APHA’s Benjamin participated along with Howard Koh, MD, MPH, assistant secretary for health in the Department of Health and Human Services. The chat, held April 2, drew more than 250 participants who tweeted about 720 times using the Twitter hashtag, #NPHWchat.
On Capitol Hill, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., introduced the 2012 National Public Health Week Resolution in Congress. The resolution noted that people in the United States live an average of 78 years, but only 69 of those years are spent in good health. It also noted that chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes are responsible for millions of premature deaths and cause Americans to miss 2.5 billion days of work each year.
The resolution, which garnered 10 co-sponsors in the Senate and 20 in the House, supported the goals and ideals of National Public Health Week and recognized public health professionals nationwide for their work.
“National Public Health Week is a time for everyone to ask themselves, ‘What small steps can I take today to ensure I am healthy tomorrow?’” Roybal-Allard said in a statement. “Our country provides some of the world’s best health care, but we still rank behind many countries in life expectancy, infant mortality and other indicators of healthy living. National Public Health Week brings attention to ways in which we can improve our health, including going to preventative screenings, eating healthier and getting regular exercise.”
National Public Health Week was boosted this year by its partnerships. More than 180 groups partnered with APHA to share the prevention message, including 50 national partners, 70 state partners and 61 local partners. More than 250 events were shared on the National Public Health Week online calendar.
APHA also reached out via its National Public Health Week blog, online at www.nphw.blogspot.com. During the week, a series of guest bloggers from across APHA’s Sections and other member groups, as well as from federal agencies and nonprofit groups, wrote about issues such as sexual health and mental health and well-being.
Clare Coleman, president and CEO of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, took to the blog to talk about the importance of Title X funding for women’s health.
“A healthier America does begin today,” she wrote. “Join the movement and stand with family planning providers to champion their public health contributions and to ensure that the vulnerable populations served by these providers continue to receive quality preventive health care.”
The blog also featured posts from three college students who won APHA’s National Public Health Week student blogging competition. The three winners were Jaclyn Blachman-Forshay, an APHA member and student at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University; Sarah Kershner, a student at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health; and Katie Baker, a student at East Tennessee State University’s College of Public Health.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius noted that this year’s theme for National Public Health Week was particularly appropriate as the U.S. continues implementing the Affordable Care Act.
“From vaccinations and safe water to tobacco control and motor vehicle safety, public health is a critical element of our nation’s health care system,” Sebelius said. “Under the health care law, many Americans can now get such vital preventive services as mammograms and other cancer screenings, vaccines and cholesterol screenings with no co-pay or deductible.”
National Public Health Week 2013 will be observed April 1–7. The theme of next year’s celebration will be announced during APHA’s 140th Annual Meeting, which will be held Oct. 27–31 in San Francisco. Check the National Public Health Week website, www.nphw.org , for information.
For more on National Public Health Week, visit www.nphw.org, call 202-777-2424 or email nphw{at}apha.org.
- Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association
