Will Humble Professional Development, Public Health Law, Wills Blog

Arizona Legislative Session Begins Monday, January 13: Here’s Our Advocacy Approach

January 13 marks the beginning of the 2025 legislative session. The kickoff will be the Governor’s address to the legislature where she’ll outline what she sees as priorities.

AzPHA will follow the session closely and express our support or opposition to bills based on a simple core principle…  we support bills that will have a positive impact on public health especially when they are evidence-based or evidence-informed.  We will oppose bills that are likely to have a negative impact on public health. 

Our support or opposition to bills is located on the https://www.azleg.gov/ site under RTS Current Bill Positions. We have a host of Resolutions that also guide our advocacy which are posted on our website.

The fact that we have Resolutions on so many core public health priorities make it easy for us to be swift with our support or opposition. Our Resolutions go all the way back to the 1930s. They are initiated by either the Board or our members and all resolutions have been voted on and approved by our members.

Our Public Health Policy Committee has a discussion board on Basecamp and that’s also where we post information, research and documents related to public health policy.  Let me know if you’d like to sign up for that Basecamp site at [email protected].

Our policy committee also has conference calls Fridays at 2pm starting January 17. Details are in our policy committee basecamp (email me at [email protected] to get access to the members policy committee Basecamp).

Will Humble Professional Development, Wills Blog

Call for Presentations: Shape the Future of Public Health at AzPHA’s 2025 Conference

Are you ready to help redefine public health for the future? The Arizona Public Health Association invites you to submit your ideas for presentations at our upcoming annual conference:

Modernizing Public Health Practice:
Building an Innovative & Inclusive Infrastructure for the Public Health of the Future

This exciting event will take place on April 3, 2025, with a call for presentations through February 2, 2025. We’re seeking innovative thinkers, practitioners, and researchers to share insights and strategies that can drive transformative change in public health in the areas of: 1) data, informatics and artificial intelligence; 2) public health workforce; and 3) engaging young professionals.

What We’re Looking for:

The 2025 conference focuses on modernizing public health infrastructure to meet emerging challenges and opportunities. We encourage submissions that explore topics in the following tracks:

  • Using AI to enhance public health practice and patient population outcomes
  • Data infrastructure and informatics
  • Public health workforce
  • Engaging public health professionals
Submit Your Proposal: AzPHA Annual Conference April 3, 2025- Call for Abstracts | Cognito Forms

One of the conference’s key tracks will explore the role of artificial intelligence in public health. As highlighted in Health Affairs, AI is revolutionizing public health by enabling advanced disease surveillance, predictive modeling, and efficient resource allocation. For instance, AI tools are being used to detect outbreaks earlier, allowing for faster interventions.

But the promise of AI comes with challenges. Presentations on this topic could examine issues like algorithmic bias, ethical considerations, data privacy, and the need for equitable implementation. How can public health professionals harness AI’s potential while maintaining public trust? We want to hear your ideas!

Why Submit?

Presenting at AzPHA’s annual conference is a unique opportunity to:

  • Showcase your expertise and innovations to a diverse audience of public health enthusiasts
  • Spark meaningful conversations that shape the future of public health practice
  • Connect with peers, leaders and organizations working toward shared goals

Whether you’re conducting groundbreaking research, implementing impactful programs, or developing innovative tools, your work could inspire and guide others.

How & When to Submit

Our submission deadline is February 2, 2025. If you have any questions, please contact Will Humble ([email protected]) or Lauriane Bellot Hanson ([email protected]). View additional conference details and submit your abstract by February 2, 2025, here: AzPHA Annual Conference April 3, 2025- Call for Abstracts

Let’s collaborate to build a public health infrastructure that’s innovative, inclusive, and ready for the future.

Your voice matters—join us in shaping the conversation!

Submit Your Proposal: 
AzPHA Annual Conference April 3, 2025- Call for Abstracts

 

Will Humble Public Health, Wills Blog

Transforming Public Health Practice With Generative Artificial Intelligence

Transforming Public Health Practice With Generative Artificial Intelligence | Health Affairs

Abstract: Public health practice appears poised to undergo a transformative shift as a result of the latest advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). These changes will usher in a new era of public health, charged with responding to deficiencies found during the COVID-19 pandemic and managing investments required to meet the health needs of the twenty-first century.

In this Commentary, we explore how AI is being used in public health, and we describe the advanced capabilities of generative AI models capable of producing synthetic content such as images, videos, audio, text, and other digital content.

Viewing the use of AI from the perspective of health departments in the United States, we examine how this new technology can support core public health functions with a focus on near-term opportunities to improve communication, optimize organizational performance, and generate novel insights to drive decision making.

Finally, we review the challenges and risks associated with these technologies, offering suggestions for health officials to harness the new tools to carry out public health goals.

Three Applications for Generative AI Models in Public Health

Public Communication

Organizational Performance

Novel Insights

Public health has the potential to rapidly evolve with the advent of new technologies. But ultimately, AI, including generative AI, is just a tool, similar to a vaccine or genomic surveillance.

Public health practitioners will need to master the new tools and learn to use them as part of a larger public health strategy. This discussion reviews the use of AI and presented three early use cases for generative AI related to communications, organizational performance, and generating novel insights that align with three of the eight core capabilities defined in the Foundational Public Health Services framework.

Transforming Public Health Practice With Generative Artificial Intelligence | Health Affairs