Strategic Plan

Strategic Plan 2004 - 2009

1) Introduction

This plan was developed by the faculty of the School of Public Health in the fall of 2003. It was guided by (1) the Strategic Plan for LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans for the same period (2) the history of Public Health at LSU Health Sciences Center (3) the mission of the School that was approved by the LSU system and Board of Regents of Higher Education in the spring of 2003 and (4) the requirements for accreditation of the School as set forth by the Council on Accreditation for Schools of Public Health (CEPH) shortly thereafter. Criteria for evaluating our progress are included.

2) History

Public Health at LSU Health Sciences Center has a long and distinguished history in tropical medicine and other fields of study in the School of Medicine dating back to 1941. Its programs were incorporated in the Department of Pathology in the 1980’s. It was reactivated as a free standing Department in 1994. Since then it has grown in size and importance though its three part mission of education, research and service. In 1995 the Department launched its first programmatic initiative in proposing the MPH program, which was subsequently approved by the Board of Regents. Enrollment was limited to students pursuing other graduate programs in the Medical, Dental, Allied Health, Nursing and Graduate schools of LSUHSC. The program is offered through the graduate school at LSU Health Sciences Center and is administered by the Department of Public Health in the School of Medicine. It was accredited by the Council for Education in Public Health in June of 2003 through June 2007. In 2003 the Department was reorganized as a School of Public Health and will offer MPH degrees with concentrations in Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Environmental Health Services starting in the fall of 2004 and in Behavioral Health Sciences/Community Medicine and Health Policy and Administration in the fall of 2005 with additional concentrations and joint programs under development.

3) Mission

The mission of the LSU School of Public Health is to improve the health of the people of Louisiana through education, research and community service with a special emphasis on the health and healthcare of underserved people and on the industries of importance to the State. The school will endeavor to inspire and support people-centered health and healthcare in which people actively pursue and take responsibility for health, care is centered on the individual and families, and public policies support healthy people and communities. Education is needed to teach people what they can do to improve their health and the health of their communities. Research is needed to discover why our health is poor and what can be done about it. Service is needed to translate what we have discovered into action.

4) Goals and Objectives

a) Education

i) Prepare students to be leaders in public health practice and research for the state and nation

(1) Develop pre-professional MPH curriculum

(a) Epidemiology

(b) Biostatistics/ bioinformatics

(c) Environmental/ occupational health

(d) Health Policy and Administration

(e) Behavioral sciences/community health

(2) Expand professional curriculum (MPH) for health professional students and graduates

(a) Combined programs: MD, DDS, DSN, DVM, and PhD - MPH

(b) Public Health and Preventive Medicine Concentration (PH&PM)

(c) Administration and Management Concentration (A&M)

(d) Generalist Concentration

(3) Develop PhD in Biostatistics/ bioinformatics

(4) Expand use of electronic format for instruction

(5) Enroll students in educational programs

(6) Develop combined professional degree programs with other health professional schools

(7) Develop public health tracks with colleges (3 + 2 year combined degree programs)

b) Research

i) Expand research programs to become national leaders in areas of interest

(1) Recruit research faculty and/ or research teams with funding

(2) Develop/ expand research collaboration with other Schools/ Centers

(3) Provide technical/ grant writing/ grant management assistance to faculty

(4) Expand training in research methods

c) Resources/ infrastructure

i) Obtain resources needed to carry out the educational, research and community service mission of the School.

(1) Financial support for educational programs

(2) Number of instructional faculty

(3) Space for faculty/ administration

(4) Space for students/ instruction

(a) Develop 1600 Canal St Location to support educational activity through 2006

(b) Build new educational facility on uptown campus for > 2006

d) Community Development

i) Expand programs in Childhood/Adolescent Mental Health to become a national leader in areas of interest.
In partnership with other schools within LSU Health Sciences Center, the state office of Mental Heath, the New Orleans Adolescent Hospital (NOAH) and community providers.

(1) Develop Juvenile Justice Program (JJP) Grand Rounds program offering discipline-specific CE/CME credits

(2) Develop “Best Practices” Center for Training in juvenile justice field

(3) Publish training curricula in multimedia formats

(4) Develop specialty clinical rotations for nursing, psychiatry, mental health

(5) Increase grants and contracts awarded to JCPJJP faculty

(6) Support development of an MPH concentration in Child Health

ii) Expand programs in Physical Fitness
In partnership with Pennington Biomedical Research Center, the City of New Orleans STEPS program, the Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI) and others

(1) Develop and maintain the Walk to Wellness as a service and teaching program to enhance health and fitness.

(2) Establish weekly health promotion column/ radio spots for major newspapers/ radio stations in the state

iii) Expand programs in Tobacco/alcohol control
In partnership with the LSU Health Care Services Division (HCSD) Louisiana Tobacco Control Program (LTCP), tobacco and alcohol coalitions and the Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI)

(1) Provide leadership in oversight of the LTCP

(2) Develop and implement cessation programs within LTCP for the HCSD Disease Management Program

(3) Develop funded research to enhance the research base of the School of Public Health and the LTCP, and to guide future directions of LTCP.

(4) Expand alcohol-related grants and contracts

iv) Expand programs in Cancer Prevention
In partnership with the LSU Scott Cancer Center and the Louisiana Cancer Research Consortium (LCRC)

(1) Lead development of a Cancer Control Plan for Louisiana

(2) Seek CDC implementation funds based on the Plan

(3) Hire faculty in collaboration with the Scott Cancer and the LCRC to fill cancer center research program needs and enhance School of Public Health research base

v) Increase access to healthcare
In partnership with Partnership for Access to Healthcare (PATH), the Louisiana Public Health Institute (LPHI), the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH), LSU Health Care Services Division (HCSD) and others

(1) Improve health of the community by facilitating improved access to effective health

(2) Services for under/uninsured and rural populations

(3) Expand community health information infrastructure

(4) Increase the number of health services provided to urban and rural patients through the utilization of telemedicine/telehealth technologies

(5) Secure grant funding and contracts with community partner organizations directed at increasing access to health care for under/uninsured and rural populations.

(6) Expand community health information network

vi) Strengthen All Hazards Disaster Response Capabilities in the state
In partnership with LSU School of Medicine, LSU Heath Care Services Division (HCSD), the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH), the Louisiana Office of Public Health (OPH), the state and regional offices of Emergency Preparedness (OEP), and the Louisiana National Guard (LANG)

(1) Expand participation in statewide readiness initiatives

(a) Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) Hospital Preparedness Grant (with DHH)

(b) State CDC Preparedness Grant (with OPH)

(c) Metropolitan Medical Response Grant (with City OEP)

(d) State and City Special Needs Patients Sheltering Planning

(e) Trauma network planning effort (with HCSD)

(2) Expand regional education and training initiatives

(a) Modify, develop and provide disaster preparedness awareness and performance curricula including the employment of patient simulation technology for the state health science centers and state emergency preparedness agencies (with LANG)

(b) Develop a Disaster Preparedness Patient Simulation Training Lab at the Emergency Preparedness Institute in Carville LA (with LANG)

(c) Serve as lead agent for US Department of Homeland Security Office of Domestic Preparedness healthcare training in Louisiana – accept recent DHS offer to review national curricula.

(d) Provide leadership and faculty in the development the national Department of Homeland Security Training Academy in Anniston, AL.