About NEPHTC
Central Office
NEPHTC Central Office:
Department of Community Health Sciences at Boston University School of Public Health
NEPHTC
Patricia A. Janulewicz Lloyd, DSc, Principal Investigator
Dr. Janulewicz is the Principal Investigator for NEPHTC. Dr. Janulewicz combines her expertise in environmental health, neurotoxicology and teratology to examine how environmental exposures impact the nervous system. Her work spans the life-course and examines prenatal, early postnatal, childhood and adult exposures. Dr. Janulewicz’s ongoing projects include investigating the gene-environment interactions in multiple cohorts of Gulf War veterans in order to determine why some veterans became ill following in-theater exposures and other did not, examining the link between the microbiome and veterans health, exploring the role endocrine disrupting chemicals have on thyroid function, examining the effects of maternal medication use during pregnancy and child neurodevelopment, investigating the long-term developmental trajectories of children prenatally exposure to the Zika virus and assessing head impact exposures as a public health issue using an exposure assessment framework.
Karla Todd Barrett, MBA, MSM, Senior Program Manager and Training Specialist
Karla Todd Barrett is the Senior Program Manager and Training Specialist at the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH). She manages overall operations and partnerships for HRSA-funded New England Public Health Training Center (NEPHTC), including training development, data analysis, reporting and governance. Ms. Todd Barrett has authored or presented about NEPHTC training innovations for the public health workforce at NACCHO, APHA, NNPHI, SOPHE and NACCHO Emergency Preparedness. In the past year, NEPHTC reached over 60,000 participants, through 500+ trainings, in collaboration with health departments, associations, and other academic institutions, reaching a diverse public health professional workforce. NEPHTC is committed to supporting Community Health Worker organizations in New England. Ms. Todd Barrett is a co-author of the Public Health Learning Agenda for Systems Change Manuscript and Toolkit. Four of NEPHTC’s courses have been selected by the CDC Learning Connection for national promotion and 18 of NEPHTC’s self-paced courses have been awarded quality seals by the Public Health Learning Navigator.
Alyssa Faria, MPH, Training Manager
Ms. Faria is the Training Manager for NEPHTC, SHIELD and LPHI at the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH). Before joining BUSPH, Alyssa worked as an Academic Instructional Technologist at Northeastern University. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Human Services and her Master of Public Health at Northeastern University.
Kathleen MacVarish, MS, REHS, RS, Instructional Designer
Ms. MacVarish, Director of Practice Programs, is the Associate Professor of Instructional Design for NEPHTC. A number of workforce development programs and courses under her direction have received state and national recognition for innovation, impact, and best practices. Kathleen was a local Board of Health Agent in Massachusetts for 15 years and also directed local tobacco control programs and worked as a Sanitarian/Inspector in California and New York. She has been a Registered Sanitarian since 1986 and currently holds national (Registered Environmental Health Specialist) and state (Registered Sanitarian) credentials. She received a BS in Food Science from Cornell University and an MS in Environmental Studies from UMass Lowell. In 2012 she graduated from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Environmental Public Health Leadership Institute and in 2016 she matriculated in the MEd Instructional Design program at UMass Boston. Kathleen’s professional activities have included a variety of appointed and elected positions in national and state associations.
Olivia Stenger, Marketing Coordinator
Ms. Stenger is the Marketing Coordinator for NEPHTC, LPHI, and SHIELD at Boston University School of Public Health. Prior to her employment at BUSPH, she worked as Editorial Assistant for Journal of the American Heart Association, an open-access, online research journal. She graduated from University of Connecticut with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and Speech, Language, and Hearing Science.
Maurine Crouch, MPH
Maurine Crouch is a program manager in the Office of Public Health Practice at the Yale School of Public Health. She works with the New England Public Health Training Center as the training partner for Connecticut, focused on continuing education for public health professionals. Prior to this position, she has worked in COVID response, substance use disorder research, health communication, and nutrition education. She received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Virginia and her MPH in Community Health Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Christie Ngo, Data Analyst
Christie is the Student Data Analyst for NEPHTC at the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH). She is currently pursuing a Master of Public Health degree at BUSPH with concentrations in Epidemiology & Biostatistics and Community Assessment, Program Design, Implementation, and Evaluation. Prior to joining BUSPH, Christie worked as a Program Assistant at the University of Southern California with a focus on social and behavioral health determinants and addiction research. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Neha Hanumanthiah, Student Marketing Assistant
Neha is a current Master of Public Health candidate at Boston University School of Public Health with plans of graduating in May 2023. She received her Bachelor of Science from Saint Louis University in 2021, where she studied Health Management and Policy, Public Health, and Spanish.
Mia Taylor, Student Training Program Assistant
Mia is the Student Training Program Assistant for NEPHTC at the Boston University School of Public Health. She is currently pursuing a Master of Public Health degree at BUSPH with a functional certificate in Epidemiology & Biostatistics and a context certificate in Maternal and Child Health. Mia received her Bachelor of Arts in Health and Society from the University of Vermont in 2022.
Martine Chase, DrPH Fellow
Martine Chase is a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) fellow working with NEPHTC. She is pursuing her DrPH at Boston University’s School of Public Health. Martine’s experience includes capacity building, strategic planning, control of infectious diseases and strengthening of strategic information systems. Her previous roles included serving as Strategic Information Team Lead for the CDC Caribbean Regional Office and as an International Consultant with- the PAHO/WHO Eastern Caribbean Office and the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC Global).
Community Health Worker Partners
In 2016, NEPHTC conducted an environmental scan to “help [NEPTHC] better understand the evolving CHW workforce model in each [New England] state and identify potential roles NEPTHC might play in the future development of the CHW workforce.“ The scan, which can be accessed here, NEPHTC_CHW Environmental Scan_2016, consisted of reviewing state and national reports and resources and conducting a series of group interviews of CHW supporters by state. It revealed that formal and informal networks advocating for CHWs existed in each state and momentum towards formal credentialing of CHWs was gathering strength, with four of six states in the process of establishing some sort of system. Recommendations included that NEPHTC work with the CHW allies who were “looking to improve their CHW training infrastructure, including continuing education programs.”
NEPHTC builds relationships with a variety of training partners and CHW Advisors to support Community Health Workers, a vital part of the front line public health workforce. We are a public health training and learning organization, and one of our roles is to support the organizations participating in the development of this workforce, by providing training and educational technology support.
Advisory Committee Members:
Jamie Berberena is a CHW and serves as Regional Chapter Leader in Southeastern Massachusetts and Advisory Board member for the Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers. She is a core competency trainer with the Center for Health Education for the Boston Public Health Commission and has facilitated CHW trainings with the Justice Resource Institute. She contributes upstream programming approaches for Health Begins and serves as a policy council member with the Massachusetts Public Health Association.
Areliz O. Barbosa is a CHW and was pioneer valley regional coordinator for the Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers from December 7, 2019- December 31, 2021. She currently works at Bay Path University in an interprofessional team teaching Introduction to Public Health, Culture Humility, and Social Justice to Physician’s Assistant students. She is passionate about sharing and using her lived experience as a tool to teach and inspire others.
Friend and Former Advisory Committee member: Gail Hirsch–Board Member, NACHW Former Director of Office of Community Health Workers, MA Department of Public Health
Curriculum Design Expert:
Dawn Heffernan, MS, Community Health Nursing
Ms. Heffernan is a Contact Tracing Case Investigator on Partners in Health Contact Tracing Team and is Past Program Director of the Western MA Public Health Training Center (WMPHTC). She is also a registered nurse, certified diabetes educator, master trainer for Stanford Diabetes Self-Management Programs (DSMP), and T-trainer for the Stanford Chronic Disease Self-Management Programs. She is responsible for developing a 60-hour community health worker (CHW) curriculum that meets the MA Board of Certification of CHW Approved Core Competencies. She has developed self-paced CHW training and popular webinars featuring both experts working with CHWs and CHWs in practice. Ms. Heffernan has many ties to clinical and public health agencies and organizations.
For a list of all CHW trainings, click this Search Tool for CHW related content:
Workshops:
COVID-19 Peer Learning and Support for Community Health Workers
MACHW Workshops: Housing Rights and Advocacy Resources for CHWs
MACHW Workshops: ABCs of Immigration & Know Your Rights
NEPHTC is continuing a bi-monthly interactive workshop series in partnership with the Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers on urgent community public health challenges through summer 2021.
Self Paced Trainings aimed at CHWs:
Introduction to Ethics for CHWs
Introduction to HIPAA for CHWs (coming soon)
Introduction to Outreach Methods and Strategies
Use of Public Health Concepts and Approaches
Introducción a los Métodos y Estrategias de Alcance
Popular Series: Transmission-Based Precautions in the Ambulatory Care Setting
Several Webinars Per Year aimed at CHWs:
CHW Webinar: Trauma Informed Self Care and Community Care during a Pandemic
An examination of Harm Reduction during the COVID 19 Pandemic through an Anti -Racist Lens: A Discussion Based Webinar
Conversations around Chronic Care: Introduction to Motivational Interviewing
Practical Strategies to Increase Your Personal Safety While Doing Fieldwork
2 part series: Trauma Informed Care to Support Health and Well-Being
2 part series: The Essential Role of Community Health Workers in Addressing the Opioid Epidemic Webinar 2
Community Health Workers Learn Teach Back
Role of Community Health Workers in the Prevention of Diabetes Part 1
Role of Community Health Workers in the Prevention of Diabetes Part 2
Integration of Community Health Workers Into a Community Health Center Pharmacy
Technical Assistance Partner: Boston Public Health Commission CHEC
Other NEPHTC collaborations with organizations supporting CHW learning and training:
Develop workshop series with Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers (2020 – present)
Featured Denise Smith, National Association of Community Health Workers (2020)
Participate as possible in Regional NE CHW Coalition, organized by Region 1 HHS Georgia Simpson (2018 – present)
Attend NHCHW annual meeting (2019 – present, as held)
Collaborate in training development with Southern New Hampshire AHEC (CHW trainer) (2016 – present)
Collaborate in training development with Maine Mobile Health (2018 – present)
Support CHW training via University of New England (2019 – present)
Support training and marketing through RI CHW Association (2017 – present)
Seek advisory support from RI DPH Special Health Needs which supports CHWs (2016 – present)
Communicate about training options with newly forming Community Health Workers of Vermont, organized by VT DPH Chronic Disease (2020 – present)
Support Connecticut Partnership for Public Health Workforce Development which includes CHW supporting organizations (2016 – present)
Connecticut
Snapshot of NEPHTC in Connecticut:
BRINGING PREPAREDNESS SKILLS TO COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS: NEPHTC USES PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN FOUR NEW ENGLAND STATES
NEPHTC partner, Yale School of Public Health, together with community health center association partners, worked with preparedness experts to design a project-based learning course to help community health centers get and stay ready for emergencies.
Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) are required by HRSA to be National Incident Command System (NIMS) compliant and have an Emergency Operations Plan (EOP). In addition, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an Emergency Preparedness (EP) Rule, effective in November 2017, that required FQHCs to have and maintain an emergency preparedness program. These EP programs and plans should utilize the Incident Command System (ICS) for implementation. Because of high turnover and understaffing in many FQHC organizations, there is ongoing need for preparedness planning that is both practical and implementable.
“By designing this course to include project-based learning, Kathi Traugh is offering a contextualized learning opportunity to community health centers, of direct relevance to their work environments and based on their specific needs,” says NEPHTC Primary Investigator, Dr. Anne Fidler.
Tina Wright, Operations Manager for the Massachusetts League of Community Health Center speaks to the value of the training program: “CHCs are where public health happens in the community. It is critical we be able to speak the same language as our public health counterparts and communicate underneath in the same structure. We definitely see that happening with the ICS training across health care and public health.”
Community Based Training Partner:
Yale School of Public Health
Principal Investigator and Manager of Student Internships:
Kathi Traugh, MPH
Ms. Traugh is Director of Public Health Workforce Development and Continuing Education for the Yale School of Public Health’s Office of Public Health Practice. There, she works with partners to coordinate and implement continuing education programs for public health practitioners, and provides technical assistance to public health agencies on workforce development. Ms. Traugh is also Project Director for the CT Partnership for Public Health Workforce Development. Previously, she served as lead coordinator for the Yale Center for Public Health Preparedness. Ms. Traugh is a member of the Council of Linkages Core Competency Workgroup and is a past president of the CT Public Health Association.
In addition to coordinating trainings in Connecticut, Ms. Traugh will serve as part of the NEPHTC central office staff. In that role, she will manage the student internship program, act as the expert on the TRAIN LMS, and coordinate CBT needs assessments with each CBT.
Executive Director, Office of Public Health Practice:
Susan Nappi, MPH
Susan Nappi is the Executive Director of the Office of Public Health Practice at the Yale School of Public Health. With a diverse portfolio in public health practice and research, she has held multiple positions in Connecticut including Senior Director of Community Impact at the United Way of Greater New Haven, Executive Director of the Community Center of Excellence in Women’s Health (CCOE) at Griffin Hospital, and Practice Administrator of the Griffin Faculty Practice Plan. Susan has also managed research teams at the Yale School of Public Health and the VA Alcohol Research Center. Her primary interest is building collaborative, equitable, and mutually beneficial community-academic partnerships that espouse a multidisciplinary approach to addressing the social drivers of health. Susan is a first-gen college graduate and received her BA in psychology from the State University of New York, Purchase, and her MPH from Yale University in chronic disease epidemiology. She is currently pursuing her DrPH in Public Health Leadership at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Public Health.
Program Manager, Office of Public Health Practice:
Maurine Crouch, MPH
Maurine Crouch is a program manager in the Office of Public Health Practice at the Yale School of Public Health. She works with the New England Public Health Training Center as the training partner for Connecticut, focused on continuing education for public health professionals. Prior to this position, she has worked in COVID response, substance use disorder research, health communication, and nutrition education. She received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Virginia and her MPH in Community Health Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Partner’s special areas of expertise:
Environmental Health, Incident Command Systems, Performance Improvement, Train the Trainer Effective Training,
Infection Prevention
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
Advisory Committee member(s):
- Patrice Sulik – Director of Health, North Central District Health Department
- Mario Garcia, MD, MSc, MPH – Public Health Systems Improvement, CT Department of Public Health
Mario Garcia is the manager of the Public Health Systems Improvement Section in the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Under Dr. Garcia’s leadership, the Department develops several planning efforts such as the State Health Improvement plan, a Public Health Workforce Development plan, Quality Improvement and Performance Management projects, and Health Equity initiatives.
Throughout the last two decades, Dr. Garcia has worked in the Connecticut’s public health sector, as a chronic disease programs manager, local health director and consultant on population health innovations. Early in his career, Dr. Garcia worked as consultant for health reform projects in Latin America, and delivered humanitarian medical relief in multiple countries for Doctors Without Borders. A trained physician, Dr. Garcia obtained a Master’s in Community Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and devoted his entire career to the practice of public health. Dr. Garcia is also a graduate from the Master’s program at the Yale School of Public Health where he concentrated in Health Policy and Administration.
Sample training/work with NEPHTC:
- Transmission-Based Precautions in the Ambulatory Care Setting
- Standard Precautions in the Ambulatory Care Setting: Personal Protective Equipment and Safe Surfaces
- Standard Precautions in the Ambulatory Care Setting: Safe Cough Practices
- Standard Precautions in the Ambulatory Care Setting: The Basics of Hand Hygiene
- Foundations of Infection Prevention in the Ambulatory Care Setting
- The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative: Successful Cross-Sector Collaboration
- CT Healthy Homes Outdoors: Climate Change, Lung Disease & Mitigation Strategies
- Innovation in Public Health: Giving Meaning to a Buzzword
- CT Healthy Homes: Mold Confusion? Think Moisture Intrusion
- CT Healthy Homes – CT Statewide Hoarding Resources: Assets for Community Agencies
- Agri-Tourism in CT and Public HealthEmerging Contaminants: What Public Health Needs to Know
- Health Care Incident Command Systems: Application for Massachusetts Community Health Centers
- Health Care Incident Command Systems: Application for Maine Community Health Centers
- Health Care Incident Command Systems: Application for Connecticut Community Health Centers
- Health Care Incident Command Systems: Application for Rhode Island Community Health Centers
Maine
Snapshot of NEPHTC in Maine:
BRINGING MAINE PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGERS TOGETHER, SUPPORTING THEM WHEN THEY ARE APART
University of New England Center for Health Innovation worked together with BUSPH to customize a management curriculum for public health professionals in health departments and community based organizations across Maine. In Spring, 2019, the third cohort of managers will be taking the highly rated program. “The most popular part of the program are the live meetings, so people can share experience and get coaching from some terrific communications and organizational experts,” says Karen O’Rourke, PI for the NEPTHC in Maine.”This gives participants the knowledge that they are not alone, and helps encourage them to face some of the very challenging and complex problems faced in public health, particularly in rural areas.” UNE also works with BUSPH, University of Southern Maine, and the Maine CDC to distribute online public health training. “It’s important to have training that is accessible 24-7,” says Maine NEPHTC Advisory Committee Member Nancy Birkhimer, Manager of Accreditation and Performance Improvement, DHHS, “Turnover in public health, and lack of population density means that live training is not viable for busy professionals. Online training is an increasingly important complement to live training, especially for highly specific analytical or public health science skills.”
Community Based Training Partner:
University of New England Center for Excellence in Health Innovation
Principal Investigator:
Jennifer Gunderman, MPH
Jennifer’s original career path was to be a physician but soon realized that my skill and passion belonged elsewhere. Luckily my college has a public health major, and the rest is history. My background includes being a Peace Corps volunteer in Niger, working with the state of Maine health department as an infectious disease epidemiologist, providing technical assistance to Caribbean countries on HIV surveillance, and even owning an organic farm. I live in Belfast, Maine with my 3 children where we enjoy being outdoors as much as possible.
State Technical Assistance Partner:
Maine Public Health Association
Rebecca Boulos, MPH, PhD, Executive Director
Dr. Boulos is MPHA’s Executive Director, having taken on the role in August 2016. Becca comes to this position having served on the MPHA Board from 2014-2016, including as vice-president of the Board. Her career in public health spans 13 years, having worked for research institutions and non-profit organizations. Prior to working for MPHA, Becca was assistant professor at the University of New England’s School of Community and Population Health, where she developed and directed a new undergraduate program in nutrition, and directed UNE’s undergraduate public health program. During her time at UNE, she served as either principal or co-principal investigator on several research grants, receiving funding from organizations such as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Her areas of specialization are community-based participatory research, nutrition, physical activity, and childhood obesity prevention.
Partners’ areas of expertise:
Management, Plain Language, Health Numeracy, Population Health, Aging, ECHO case teaching, Obesity
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
- UNE Center for Excellence in Health Innovation
- Maine Public Health Association
- Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Advisory Committee member(s):
- Nancy Birkhimer, MPH – Manager of Accreditation and Performance Improvement, Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Operations
- Erik Gordon – Accreditation and Workforce Development Coordinator, Department of Health and Human Services, Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Sample training/work with NEPHTC:
Massachusetts
Snapshot of NEPHTC in Massachusetts:
SUPPORTING HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AND SCHOOL NURSES
The NEPHTC funding helps train professionals from local, regional, and state public health agencies and school districts in Massachusetts. With 351 cities and towns and limited regional or county government, that’s a lot of school districts and health departments!
Public health officials can choose from fifty “On Your Time” trainings that cover foundational public health topics as well as public health sciences, emergency preparedness, environmental health, and disease surveillance and control. These free trainings are available online, 24/7, and can generally be completed in one to three hours. Public health officials can also participate in more comprehensive courses such as the award winning “Managing Effectively in Today’s Public Health Environment”. By hosting the course on the NEPHTC learning management system (LMS), busy professionals can complete the four month course with a series of classroom workshops, live or recorded webinars, and E-Learnings. The LMS also allows learners to track their progress and to engage with other learners on discussion boards, facilitated by experienced public health managers. With some ingenuity and flexibility, the course can be customized for specific audiences, such as the Boston Public Health Commission.
Nurses who want to work in Massachusetts schools must complete a set of required courses and, with NEPHTC educational technology, one required course “Medication Administration and Delegation” can now be taken online. The online version includes an E-Book to describe regulatory requirements and is available 24/7, so nurses don’t have to wait for a classroom course that had only been offered three times per year. Offering this course online has made it possible for SHIELD to collaborate with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to design and deliver an advanced live workshop for Nurse Managers who oversee a district’s medication administration program.
In addition, NEPHTC hosts monthly webinars on a wide range of topics for public health professionals and community health workers, reaching attendees across the country.
Massachusetts Training
Local Public Health Institute (LPHI)
Ojaswini (Wini) Bakshi, MA, MPH, Program Manager, Local Public Health Institute (LPHI)
Ojaswini is the Program Manager for the Local Public Health Institute (LPHI) of Massachusetts. She has a background in social work and has an MPH in the field of health and social behavior. She worked for four years across South Asia on issues such as immunization, nutrition, maternal and child health, and sexual and reproductive health. She conducted primary and secondary research for human rights bodies, implemented programs in low and middle income settings, and monitored and evaluated policies and programs for UNICEF and WHO. Her work in public health sought to understand health issues in resource constrained settings, have clarity in analyzing policies/exploring their impact, and devising communication methods for optimal results.
School Health Institute for Education and Leadership (SHIELD)
Beverly Heinze-Lacey, MPH, BSN, RN – Director SHIELD, Lifelong Learning
Ms. Heinze-Lacey is Director of SHIELD, overseeing and delivering professional development training programs for MA school nurses and other school wellness professionals. She implemented a statewide Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) in Schools training program, and continues to train and consult with school professionals in implementing their SBIRT programs. Previously, Ms. Heinze-Lacey worked as a school nurse and school nurse leader, and has wealth of experience managing school health programs. She has also worked as a clinical research nurse, an HIV/AIDS epidemiologist, and has coordinated a number of public health and research initiatives.
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
- Activist Lab
- Coalition for Local Public Health
- Massachusetts Association of Health Boards
- Massachusetts Association of Public Health Nurses
- Massachusetts Environmental Health Association
- Massachusetts Health Officers Association
- Massachusetts Public Health Association
- Massachusetts School Nurse Association
Advisory Committee member(s):
Patrick Maloney, MPAH, CHO, RS – Assistant Director of Public Health, Director of Environmental Health, Brookline Public Health Department
Rodrigo Monterrey, MPA – Deputy Director at MA Department of Public Health, Office of Health Equity
Erica Piedade – Director of Local Public Health Initiatives, MA Department of Public Health, Office of Local and Regional Health
Lisa Swanson – Director of Training and Staff Development at MA Department of Public Health
Sample training/work with NEPHTC:
New Hampshire
Snapshot of NEPHTC in New Hampshire:
COLLABORATION TO BOLSTER THE CURRENT AND FUTURE PUBLIC HEALTH WORKFORCE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
BUSPH works in New Hampshire with the New Hampshire Public Health Association to provide training in the most needed areas to the current and future public health workforce. “The biggest topics right now are all about the social determinants of health and how to advance health equity,” says Joan Ascheim, Director of the NHPHA and former deputy director of the Division of Public Health Services in New Hampshire. “This means learning about how to work across organizations to get to the underlying causes of poor health, which is complex and requires excellence in advocacy, persuasive communications, using data and performance improvement.” NHPHA provides training opportunities to current practitioners and opportunities for public health students to learn more about the field, to be mentored and to network.
State Community Based Training Partner:
Southern New Hampshire Area Health Education Center
Director:
Paula Smith, MBA, EdD
Dr. Smith is Director of Southern New Hampshire Area Health Education Center. Dr. Smith has led activities of the Southern NH AHEC since its inception in 1998. In this role, she is responsible for program development, financial management, and overseeing staff who work to increase access to quality health care in southern NH. For more than twenty years, Dr. Smith has been instrumental in developing programs that enhance workforce diversity, communication access and cultural effectiveness. In 2020, Dr. Smith established the SNHAHEC Center for Cultural Effectiveness which houses interpretation and community health worker training as well as workforce diversity programs for youth, the Diversity and Cultural Competence Trainers’ Circle and the Equity Leaders Fellowship Program.
State Technical Assistance Partner:
New Hampshire Public Health Association (info@nhpha.org)
NHPHA partners with NEPHTC to support workforce training and student placement in New Hampshire.
Partners’ special areas of expertise:
Mentoring, performance improvement, cultural competency, social determinants of health, advocacy, hpv, chronic disease, stigma, trauma informed care, adolescent wellness
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
Advisory Committee member(s):
- Neil Twitchell – Administrator, Community Health Development Section, NH Division of Public Health Services
- Paula Smith, EdD – Director, Southern NH AHEC
Sample training/work with NEPHTC:
Rhode Island
Snapshot of NEPHTC in Rhode Island:
MOVING FROM CONFERENCE LEARNING TO ACTION IN HEALTH EQUITY
Rhode Island Department of Health has developed a health equity core competency training. It is an 8-part hybrid (online and in-person) training designed to provide a set of skills and resources needed for the broad practice of public health and health equity. The concepts and tools presented in the training reflect the characteristics that public health staff should have as they work to protect and promote the health of all Rhode Islanders. The overall goals are to: 1) Improve health department performance and practice, 2) Maintain a competent public health workforce and 3) Support the goals of public health programs and Healthy People 2020. The NEPHTC put the videos into an online accessible package and gave support in evaluating the training series, specifically, the experiential learning pilot completed in 2017 with multiple community partners.
Community Based Training Partner:
Rhode Island Department of Health Academic Center
Principal Investigator:
Laurie Leonard, MS
Ms. Leonard is the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health Academic Center. As Academic Center director, she oversees a cross program team that prioritizes training for the public health and community partner workforce, and manages research and student placement activities with Rhode Island colleges and universities. Prior to the Academic Center, Ms. Leonard was Program Manager for the Oral Health program. In the fall of 2018, Ms. Leonard will provide guidance for the 3rd Rhode Island Health Equity Conference and for a statewide meeting entitled The Higher Education Behavioral Health Summit.
Administrative Coordinator:
Steven Boudreau
Mr. Boudreau, Chief Administrative Officer for the Rhode Island Department of Health, will serve as the administrative coordinator for NEPHTC in Rhode Island. He is lead for the agencies workforce and career development efforts and will lead a coalition to review online trainings for adoption on Rhode Island’s learning management system. He also serves as the agency Diversity Liaison, a member of the RIDOH Executive Leadership Team, Health Policy and Leadership Team, Strengths Coach, and Co-chair of the State Arts and Health Advisory Group. Prior to working as Chief Administrative Officer, Mr. Boudreau was Chief of Staff at RIDOH and worked with community partners as a community development and training specialist.
State Technical Assistance Partner:
Rhode Island Public Health Institute
Amy Nunn, ScD, MSDr, Executive Director
Dr. Nunn is Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the Brown University School of Public Health, holds an appointment in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Brown Medical School, and is Executive Director of the Rhode Island Public Health Institute (RIPHI). Her current research focuses on HIV and Hepatitis C prevention especially in terms of health disparities, and on pre-exposure prophylaxis implementation science programs. Dr. Nunn has forged innovative community partnerships to address health disparities. In 2012, she established a comprehensive, neighborhood-based HIV and HCV prevention and treatment program called “Do One Thing.” Dr. Nunn consults with the CT and RI LPS for special projects and student internship placements.
Partners’ areas of expertise:
Social Justice, Health Equity Zones, Gender, Opioids, Communications, Finance and Budgeting, Incarceration, Food Insecurity
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
Advisory Committee member(s):
- Laurie Leonard, MS, Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health Academic Center
- Steven Boudreau, Chief Administrative Officer of the Rhode Island Department of Health
- Amy Nunn ScD, MSDr – Executive Director of Rhode Island Public Health Institute, Associate Professor of Public Health and Medicine at Brown University School of Public Health
Sample training/work with NEPHTC:
- Health Equity *NEPHTC is providing education technology and program evaluation support for Rhode Island’s 2017 Health Equity 3.0 training pilot
- Food Insecurity and Rhode Island Seniors
Vermont
Snapshot of NEPHTC in Vermont:
BRINGING SYSTEMS THINKING SKILLS TO APPROACHING HEALTH PROBLEMS IN VERMONT AND BEYOND
The Boston University School of Public Health employees funded by the New England Public Health Center HRSA grant worked together with the Vermont Department of Health, experts in systems thinking and public health pedagogy, to design an replicable Systems Thinking training program for professionals in public health. “Systems Thinking is one of the most critical cross-cutting skills for public health today, according to the deBeaumont National Consortium for Public Health Workforce Development Report: A
Call to Action, and to work on critical issues like health equity,” says Heidi Klein, Director of Planning and Health Care Quality at the Vermont Department of Public Health. “We want all of our existing and emerging leaders to work on incorporating systems thinking into their approach to population health. We invested time in developing this great training for our own health department, which includes online access so anyone can use it, and have been pleased to watch it roll out to the other states in New England to get inquiries from around the country.”
Community Based Training Partner:
The Vermont Public Health Institute
Principal Investigator:
Penrose Jackson
Penrose Jackson is Director of Community Health Improvement at The University of Vermont Health Network. She is currently an advisory board member of the Association for Community Health and President of the University of Vermont Alumni Association. She served as a Senior Fellow with the Health Research & Educational Trust. Penrose is a graduate of the University of Vermont and received a Certificate in Community Benefit from Saint Louis University.
Collaborators:
Kenneth Allen, Ed.D., M.B.A.
Kenneth serves on the Board of Directors for the Vermont Public Health Association and is a senior lecturer in the Department of Biomedical and Health Sciences at the University of Vermont. Prior to moving to Vermont, Kenneth worked for Kaiser Permanente in Northern California as a clinical education coordinator, project manager, and director of imaging services. His work has often focused on regulatory compliance and advocacy, addressing inequities in the delivery of healthcare, and quality improvement in the delivery of diagnostic services. Kenneth received his doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Vermont in 2016.
Cathy Aikman, MA
Cathy Aikman, MA, is the Operations Manager of the Vermont Public Health Institute. She is passionate about working at non-profits furthering their missions to improve the lives of the people in their communities. She was the Assistant Director at the Turning Point Center of Chittenden County, Project Manager at Aspenti Health, and former Executive Director for the Chittenden County Opioid Alliance, which she joined in May 2016. She also has great interest in the community mental health field and has worked as the Quality Assurance Coordinator at Washington County Mental Health Services, Project Director for Starting Over Strong VT, a FEMA grant statewide crisis counseling program in response to Hurricane Irene, and her most recent position is the Project Director for another FEMA crisis counseling program grant providing mental health support to community members during the pandemic for COVID Support VT. Cathy received her Master’s degree from Tufts University with a focus on Urban and Social Policy after receiving her Undergraduate degree at Ripon College majoring in Sociology and minoring in Environmental Biology.
Partner’s areas of expertise:
Mental Health Upstream, Rural, Health Equity, Systems Thinking
Collaborating partners’ website(s):
Advisory Committee member(s):
- Heidi M. Klein, MSPH – Director of Planning and Healthcare Quality, VT Department of Health