The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #42839

Linda A. Block, MPH, Office on Smoking and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Hwy, NE, Mail Stop K-50, Atlanta, GA 30333, 770-488-5476, lblock@cdc.gov, Greg Connolly, DMD, MPH, Massachusetts Tobacco Control Program, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, 250 Washington St., 4th floor, Boston, MA 02108, Mike Maguire, MS, Tobacco Prevention & Control Section, Minnesota Department of Health, PO Box 64882, St. Paul, MN 55164, Chuck Wolfe, Wolfe Strategies, 1624 Corcoran St NW #K, Washington, DC 20009, and Susan Heck, Tobacco Control Program, Arizona Department of Health Services, 1740 W. Adams #203-S, Phoenix, AZ 85007.

Most would agree about the importance of comprehensiveness in any public health program, as well as the importance of integrating the various program components. However, putting into practice that integration of program components is not always so easy. Staff in various program components may view the other components as competition for program funding or media attention, or may simply get so caught up in their own activities that they forget to coordinate and communicate with folks from other program components. Therefore, public health programs need to set up an internal infrastructure for communications and decision making that strategically coordinates all the various program components. This session will stress the importance of integration and will provide participants with ideas for how to maintain this focus. During this panel presentation, representatives from several state tobacco control programs will provide examples and lessons learned from their experiences with integrating components across comprehensive programs.

Learning Objectives: At the end of the session, participants will be able to

• identify some of the challenges to coordination among the various components of a comprehensive health program, using tobacco control programs as examples.
• describe strategies used by several state tobacco control programs to integrate program elements in order to maximize synergies and produce better outcomes.
• apply information and advice provided to help coordinate and integrate within their own comprehensive programs.

Keywords: Planning, Tobacco

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.