Building Strategic Skills for Better Health

Released: October 2023 Length: 328 Pages Published By: Oxford University Press Price: $27.95
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While academic programs prepare public health graduates for the technical challenges of practice, many professionals new to the field also need training in the cross-cutting strategic skills required for successful leadership and management of health agencies. Successful practitioners blend subject matter expertise with administrative and leadership acumen to ensure that improvements in public health reach the communities they serve.

Building Strategic Skills for Better Health: A Primer for Public Health Professionals offers a dynamic guide for implementing and developing leadership, management, and advocacy skills to transform public health work across disease-focused services toward integrated population health initiatives. Authored by key leaders in public health, this professional primer defines the nine essential strategic skills for effective public health practice across public health specialties:

  • Systems and Strategic Thinking
  • Change Management
  • Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
  • Effective Communication
  • Resource Management
  • Data-Based Decision-Making
  • Policy Engagement
  • Community Engagement
  • Cross-Sectoral Partnerships

Building Strategic Skills for Better Health equips professionals at all levels with the workforce-readiness tools and knowledge needed to thrive in today’s public health agencies.

Table of contents
Read introduction
  • The core components of the Strategic Skills for Public Health Practice and why they matter for practitioners
  • How the nine cross-cutting Strategic Skills for Public Health Practice apply to your work and organization
  • Essential leadership, management, and advocacy skills for today’s public health practitioner
  • The tools and knowledge to develop workforce readiness skills for effective public health practice 
  • Brian C. Castrucci, DrPH, MA, de Beaumont Foundation
  • Michael R. Fraser, PhD, MS, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials

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What people are saying about
Building Strategic Skills for Better Health

Laura Magaña, MS, PhD, President and CEO, Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH)

This must-have book empowers professionals to drive health equity, evidence-based programs, and policymaking toward a healthier, brighter, and more just future. Advance your public health practice by exploring the strategic skills required for success in innovation, leadership, and diversity with insights into informatics, big data, and technology.

Laura Magaña, MS, PhD, President and CEO, Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH)
Joshua M. Sharfstein, Vice Dean of Public Health Practice and Community Engagement, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

With the increasing national focus on foundational public health capabilities, this primer is arriving just at the right time. It’s a highly useful overview of critical skills for the practical work of helping communities become healthier.

Joshua M. Sharfstein, Vice Dean of Public Health Practice and Community Engagement, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Donna Petersen, Chief Health Officer, University of South Florida

Building Strategic Skills for Better Health provides a shortcut to accelerate the development of critically needed skills among our already dedicated public health professionals. This resource will also help me as a professor to prepare job-ready graduates to safeguard the public’s health.

Donna Petersen, Chief Health Officer, University of South Florida
Ali S. Khan, MD, MPH, MBA, Dean, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center

Building Strategic Skills for Better Health is an evidence- and experience-based primer that will help public health practitioners across disciplines to become more adept and confident in their work.

Ali S. Khan, MD, MPH, MBA, Dean, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center
Bechara Choucair, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer, Kaiser Permanente

This is an invaluable, practical resource for public health professionals looking to tackle complex issues and improve health outcomes – a must-read for anyone committed to advancing the health and well-being of our communities.

Bechara Choucair, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer, Kaiser Permanente
Jerome Adams, MD, MPH, FASA, 20th US Surgeon General and Executive Director of Health Equity Initiatives, Purdue University

Finding a way to address cross-cutting leadership, management, and strategic challenges; not just the scientific or technical challenges of specific diseases; is a major issue facing the contemporary public health workforce. This volume will help prepare the workforce to lead through these issues and support their continued professional development in new ways, with new skills.

Jerome Adams, MD, MPH, FASA, 20th US Surgeon General and Executive Director of Health Equity Initiatives, Purdue University

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