The NYC Health Department works closely with national and global peers to develop and share innovative public health approaches.
Connecting Leaders in Health
The Big Cities Health Coalition was formed in November of 2002 to connect leaders of the largest municipal health departments in the country, and facilitate the exchange of best practices and success stories in addressing public health issues that affect urban communities. The Big Cities Health Coalition, highlighted in the map below, include health department leadership from cities that represent 15% of the nation’s population:
The Coalition holds quarterly conference calls to discuss a wide range of health issues, including nutrition policy, bioterrorism preparedness, environmental challenges, school health and infectious disease. On May 8, 2009, the Coalition came together in NYC for the first in-person meeting. Click here to read a report summarizing the recommendations from the meeting. Working groups were added to encourage greater in-depth collaboration on issues of alcohol policy, health reform, and tobacco control. In 2010, with the addition of a dedicated Coordinator, the Big Cities Health Coalition broadened and deepened participation, attracted interest from new cities, and expanded its role as an advocate for the issues most important to our nation’s biggest cities. In 2011, the Coalition also addressed firearms and injury prevention. Grant funding is currently supporting the development of an online community at www.bigcitieshealthcoalition.org, where members can share documents, such as surveys, reports, notes from past calls and program descriptions, and participate in topical forums.
The NYC Health Department’s leadership in developing this national collaboration exemplifies its role as a thought leader in the field of public health nationally and internationally, and how innovative projects seeded with private sector grants can be leveraged into efforts that have significant impact. In the case of the Big Cities Health Coalition, the impact of the NYC Health Department’s work will shape the resources allocated for public health projects in large urban centers around the U.S., the types of projects implemented, and improve the readiness of health departments across the country on a number of timely health issues.