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National Standards and Initiatives
This page contains information for users of the National Public Health Performance Standards Program who are interested in improving their performance, as well as resources related to other national standards and initiatives.
National Public Health Performance Standards Program (NPHPSP)
In an effort to improve the performance of public health organizations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is leading a coalition of national public health organizations to develop, promote, and achieve public health performance standards. The program offers state, local, and governance performance standards and measurement tools related to Essential Public Health Services. For more information about the initiative, its partners, instruments, and other technical assistance tools, visit the CDC National Public Health Performance Standards Program website.
The data generated by the NPHPSP process can be a valuable jumping off point for performance improvement efforts. To help you and your partners with those efforts:
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Visit the NPHPSP Online Resource Center.
You can search for resources that pertain to specific Essential Public Health Services or Model Standards. Or you can search the entire database by keyword or subject category. |
National Standards
View resources in the database related to other national standards. The types of standards you will find include:
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Top Resources
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Regionalization in Preparedness - The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) Project Public Health Ready (PPHR) program website states, “the need for regional preparedness has been demonstrated through both actual terrorist events and local drills and exercises that have quickly overwhelmed the capacity of any one local public health system.” The PPHR program has begun to address these needs by creating the PPHR Regional Criteria, accepting regional sites into the pilot program, and sponsoring a collaborative development process to evaluate the PPHR Regional Criteria in collaboration with the de Beaumont Foundation. Visit the PPHR website to learn more about this initiative.
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Accreditation & Other National Initiatives
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Accreditation FAQ - This brief two-page frequently asked question (FAQ) guide summarizes information on how local health officials are involved in developing the program, the connection between NACCHO’s Operational Definition and accreditation standards, in addition to other popular topics. If you have any questions, contact Penney Davis at pdavis@naccho.org or (202)-783-550, Ext 265.
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Building Blocks for Public Health: Connecting Standards and Accreditation - The archived 2007 NACCHO webcast and PowerPoint Presentation focuses on how several important programs and projects serve as the basis of public health, and how these can be used for performance assessment in preparation for national accreditation. National experts explain and discuss relationships among the Ten Essential Public Health Services, National Public Health Performance Standards Program (NPHPSP), Mobilizing Action through Planning and Partnerships program (MAPP), ASTHO's Understanding State Public Health Project, and NACCHO's Operational Definition of a Functional Local Health Department. Downloadable materials include a short primer on each project. The program is part of NACCHO's "Transforming Public Health Infrastructure Series."
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Making the Connection – Multi-State Learning Collaborative (MLC) - The National Network of Public Health Institutes (NNPHI) MLC Issue 4 newsletter (December 2007) highlights New Hampshire’s efforts to assess the local public health system readiness for national voluntary accreditation. The regional public health networks stem from the state's Turning Point initiative, which aims to achieve state and local public health system standards in the National Public Health Performance Standards Program (NPHPSP) as well as develop local entities that can meet standards in the Operational Definition of a Functional Local Health Department. Additional "Making the Connection" newsletters describing the activities of MLC states are available on NNPHI’s website
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NACCHO Helps to Develop Best Practices Portal in Canada - The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) presented its Model Practice Program at a Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) sponsored workshop (Promising Practices Workshop, Canadian Best Practices System, Toronto, Ontario on May 10-11, 2007). PHAC has been working with leaders in research and practice to guide practitioners to the most promising policy- and program-related options in cases of uncertainty and in absence of scientific evidence. PHAC identified NACCHO as a leader in developing approaches to support decisions in the absence of scientific evidence. In 2007, PHAC launched the Canadian Best Practice Portal to increase access to systematic review of evidence and best practice interventions. Visit the PHAC The Canadian Best Practices Portal for additional information.
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NACCHO's Accreditation E-Newsletter - Starting in February 2008, the National Association of County and City Health Officals (NACCHO) will offer a periodic update about accreditation preparation and quality improvement. You can find more about the newsletter by visiting their website or sign up by emailing Penney Davis at pdavis@naccho.org/accrediation.
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New Jersey Testimony on Sharing and Consolidating Services at a Regional Level (PDF) - This testimony was delivered by Dr. John Baillie, David Grubb and David Gruber at the New Jersey State House Annex on September 13, 2006. It describes the New Jersey’s current public health infrastructure, administrative responsibilities and services, and the impact of consolidation and shared services. The National Association of County and City Health Officials has made this testimony available on their website.
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Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) - This site offers the latest news about voluntary, national accreditation of state and local health departments. The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) was established in response to the final recommendations of the Exploring Accreditation Project, which are available on the site.
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Public Health Regionalization Study-National Overview (November 2007) (PDF) - This study explores the potential impact of regionalizing public health services in Massachusetts and Kansas and investigates the financial and economic rationale for regionalization in other states. Public Health regionalization offers a strategy to help smaller health departments meet the Public Health Accreditation Board’s standard to ensure that everyone, regardless of where they live, is served by a local health department that meets the standards of the Operational Definition of a Functional Health Department. In addition to this study, the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) is disseminating lessons learned, case studies and tools developed during the course of this project on their website. This Report was prepared for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Kansas Association of Local Health Departments. It was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
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Can Accreditation Work in Public Health? Lessons from Other Service Industries - This November 2004 white paper, prepared for The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, provides an overview of the literature about accreditation programs in health and social services industries. Glen P. Mays, MD, MPH, of the College of Public Health, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, offers recommendations derived from the experiences of other fields that could apply to public health. Among the report’s conclusions are:
- The ability for an accreditation program in public health to yield improvement in service delivery, operations, and health outcomes would likely depend on its design and implementation;
- A full array of stakeholders should be represented in the governance of an accreditation program; and
- The costs of such programs should be distributed so that it does not preclude the participation of some organizations.
To request the full report, click here.
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Exploring Public Health Experience with Standards and Accreditation - This October 2004 report, prepared for The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, provides an overview of the history of accreditation activities in public health and reviews current state and local accreditation programs. It also describes the stances that several major public health organizations have taken on accreditation and related programs. Lee Theilan writes that states have developed many models that public health leaders should look to as they consider whether the country would benefit from a national accreditation program.
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Multi-State Learning Collaborative - Performance Capacity Assessment of Public Health Departments - Several states have implemented performance and capacity assessment or accreditation programs. The National Network of Public Health Institutes and the Public Health Leadership Society, with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, are managing a learning collaborative to study and document such efforts in 10 states.
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Performance Standards, Accreditation, and Public Health - Three online presentations describe national and state performance standards and accreditation initiatives: "Accreditation of Public Health Agencies: Are We Bragging or Can We Do It?" (Ed Thompson, MD, MPH); "What Will It Take to be Accredited? Public Health Performance Standards and Strategies in Ohio" (James Pearsol, BA, MEd); and "Performance Standards, Public Health, and Accreditation" (Grace Gorenflo). The Ohio presentation describes specific strategies for managing performance statewide, including an overview of the standards, measures, web-based reporting tools, legislation, incentives, and results for its state and local models. Ohio's approach encompasses performance standards and measures in several important areas, including agency administration and business performance, health outcomes, and the National Public Health Performance Standards (NPHPSP) program. Lessons learned make the Ohio presentation a useful case example on aligning resources and results with statewide priorities. The Medscape webcast archive offers CME credits for physicians and continuing education contact hours for nurses through February 16, 2007. PowerPoint slides and a transcript also are available for download. The presentations were originally delivered at the December 2005 American Public Health Association Annual Meeting.
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