Agenda 04-01-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

PUBLIC HEALTH TASK FORCE 2004: PRELIMINARY RECOMMENDATIONS PUBLIC HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PLAN INTRODUCTION North Carolina's public health system must respond to new and serious public health emergencies, significant changes in population, unacceptable health disparities, decreasing funding and significant variations in public health protection between counties and regions. A reinvestment in the state's public health infrastructure is critical to providing the essential public health services that will assure public health protections for all North Carolinians. The recent terrorist events, along with outbreaks of new and often fatal infectious diseases, are a wakeup call to North Carolina. The public health system must be strengthened in order to promote and protect the public's health. New federal resources for bioterrorism preparedness have helped build some additional capacity to detect and respond to certain public health emergencies. Now the state must support these national preparedness efforts by reinvesting in core infrastructure that will enable the system to respond to all public health emergencies and threats to the health and prosperity of North Carolinians everywhere. A reinvestment of resources in the state and local public health system by the North Carolina General Assembly will coincide with an increase in public health accountability. This will be achieved through an improved system for identifying the public health needs in each community, prioritizing problems and solutions, and funding public health programs and services on the basis of performance and achievement of desired outcomes. These new systems of accountability, accreditation, and data collection will provide the tools necessary to measure success and allow the state to invest with confidence. The recommendations of this report are divided into two parts: 1. Core Infrastructure 2. Core Service Gaps 3