Helping the public health workforce do more with less

Tight budgets, funding cuts, and increasing costs associated with workforce development, are making access to quality, credible trainings and education for public health professionals difficult. With 65% of public health executives over the age of 50 and approaching retirement age, it is imperative that current and future public health workers be prepared to combat new, evolving, and emerging public health threats. TRAIN, the nation's premier learning management system designed for public health professionals, is a cost-effective and reliable solution to this growing problem. Developed by the Public Health Foundation (PHF) in 2003 in response to state requests for training that would prepare workers and track training for emergencies, TRAIN has been instrumental in promoting a competent public health workforce while curtailing travel and training expenses. With onsite training becoming extremely expensive, online learning through TRAIN is a cost-saving solution. In 2009, Kentucky conducted a preliminary return on investment (ROI) analysis, determining over $11 million was saved by utilizing TRAIN. This example illustrates how TRAIN optimizes limited budgets and generates impressive returns on investment for organizations participating in the TRAIN network. In this session, PHF will demonstrate how TRAIN can minimize workforce development costs, improve economies of scale, and prepare public health education for the future.