Who works tirelessly to prevent disease, promote health and prolong life in Kansas?
Public health professionals, that’s who!
Every day, they monitor and diagnose health concerns in our communities and promote healthy behaviors that help us all stay healthy and safe. They include:
- Public health nurses who keep children and adults from getting sick by providing immunizations, check-ups and other important services.
- Health educators who prevent and manage chronic disease by helping people make healthy lifestyle choices.
- Community health workers who protect the health of at-risk families by visiting them in their homes and neighborhoods.
- Environmental health workers who keep us safe by identifying and addressing risks in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the neighborhoods we live in.
- Maternal and child health experts who promote the health of pregnant women and their babies through education and programming.
- Epidemiologists who stop the spread of illness by identifying the causes of food poisoning and contagious disease.
- Administrators at the local and state level who keep the whole system running by synchronizing the responsibilities among the specialty areas.
- Policymakers who, through good decision-making, provide informed guidance and adequate funding.
- Many, many others.
Today marks the start of National Public Health Week, which is sponsored each year by the American Public Health Association (APHA). This week celebrates the contributions and successes of public health in all of our lives.
Help us celebrate National Public Health Week and the professionals who care for our communities by joining our social messaging. Follow the Kansas Health Institute on Twitter and Facebook to receive daily updates and additional information about how public health improves lives in Kansas.
The Kansas Health Institute delivers credible information and research enabling policy leaders to make informed health policy decisions that enhance their effectiveness as champions for a healthier Kansas. The Kansas Health Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan health policy and research organization based in Topeka, established in 1995 with a multiyear grant from the Kansas Health Foundation.