Public health informatics specialists in state and local public health workforce: insights from public health workforce interests and needs survey.

IF 4.7 2区 医学 Q1 COMPUTER SCIENCE, INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Sripriya Rajamani, Jonathon P Leider, Divya Rupini Gunashekar, Brian E Dixon
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective: Modernizing and strengthening the US public health data and information infrastructure requires a strong public health informatics (PHI) workforce. The study objectives were to characterize existing PHI specialists and assess informatics-related training needs.

Materials and methods: To examine the PHI workforce, the 2021 Public Health Workforce Interests and Needs Survey (PH WINS), a nationally representative survey with 44 732 governmental public health (PH) respondents was analyzed. The survey included data from 47 state health agencies-central office, 29 large local health departments (Big Cities Health Coalition members), and 259 other local/regional health departments. Analysis focused on "public health informatics specialist" (PHI), "information system manager/information technology specialist" (IT/IS), "public health science" (PHS), and "clinical and laboratory" (CL) roles.

Results: PHI specialists account for less than 2% of the governmental PH workforce. A majority were female (68%), White (55%), and close to half in 31-50 age category (49%). Most (74%) were in non-supervisory roles and <1% in managerial/executive roles, with less than one-third (29%) earning >$75 000 salary. Skill gaps on informatics-related tasks included: identify appropriate data/information sources; collect valid data for decision making; participate in quality improvement processes; identify evidence-based approaches. The PHI specialists reported lower skill gaps in data/informatics areas when compared to other public health roles (PHS and CL), and this was consistent across state/local settings.

Discussion: Given the scale of work needed for modernization of information systems, PH agencies need more individuals in informatics roles. To attract PHI specialists, better salaries, clear PHI job classifications and permanent PHI workers are needed, which requires sustained investments from federal and state governments.

Conclusion: Efforts to train PHI specialists, recruit and retain them in the governmental public health workforce, and address hiring issues in public health agencies are essential next steps to transform the US public health enterprise.

州和地方公共卫生工作者中的公共卫生信息学专家:来自公共卫生工作者兴趣和需求调查的见解。
目的:现代化和加强美国公共卫生数据和信息基础设施需要强大的公共卫生信息学(PHI)工作人员。研究的目的是描述现有PHI专家的特征,并评估与信息学相关的培训需求。材料和方法:为了检查PHI劳动力,分析了2021年公共卫生劳动力兴趣和需求调查(PH WINS),这是一项具有全国代表性的调查,共有44732名政府公共卫生(PH)受访者。该调查包括来自47个州卫生机构——中央办公室、29个大型地方卫生部门(大城市卫生联盟成员)和259个其他地方/地区卫生部门的数据。分析的重点是“公共卫生信息学专家”(PHI)、“信息系统经理/信息技术专家”(IT/IS)、“公共卫生科学”(PHS)和“临床和实验室”(CL)的角色。结果:PHI专家占政府PH劳动力的不到2%。大多数是女性(68%),白人(55%),接近一半的31-50岁年龄段(49%)。大多数(74%)担任非主管职位,年薪为7.5万美元。与信息学相关的任务的技能差距包括:确定适当的数据/信息源;收集决策所需的有效数据;参与质量改进过程;确定循证方法。与其他公共卫生角色(PHS和CL)相比,PHI专家报告在数据/信息学领域的技能差距较小,这在州/地方设置中是一致的。讨论:考虑到信息系统现代化所需的工作规模,PH机构需要更多的人担任信息学角色。为了吸引PHI专家,需要更高的薪水,明确的PHI工作分类和永久的PHI工作者,这需要联邦和州政府的持续投资。结论:努力培训PHI专家,在政府公共卫生工作队伍中招聘和留住他们,并解决公共卫生机构的招聘问题,是美国公共卫生企业转型的重要下一步。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association
Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association 医学-计算机:跨学科应用
CiteScore
14.50
自引率
7.80%
发文量
230
审稿时长
3-8 weeks
期刊介绍: JAMIA is AMIA''s premier peer-reviewed journal for biomedical and health informatics. Covering the full spectrum of activities in the field, JAMIA includes informatics articles in the areas of clinical care, clinical research, translational science, implementation science, imaging, education, consumer health, public health, and policy. JAMIA''s articles describe innovative informatics research and systems that help to advance biomedical science and to promote health. Case reports, perspectives and reviews also help readers stay connected with the most important informatics developments in implementation, policy and education.
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