The NYC Health Department works closely with national and global peers to develop and share innovative public health approaches.
Learning and Leading
The NYC Health Department is a leader in the field of public health nationally and internationally. NYC has its finger on the pulse of the latest innovations in public health and through the NYC Health Department, the capacity to implement big ideas. The NYC Health Department was recognized for its leadership in public health with a $2.9 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to mentor fellow CDC grantees across the country who have had more limited successes in particular priority areas. The Department provides peer-to-peer mentoring, training, and technical assistance around achieving the lasting policy, systems, and environmental change to reduce obesity and decrease smoking prevalence, smoking initiation, and exposure to secondhand smoke.
The NYC Health Department is one of the most trusted names in public health. This reputation comes from a legacy of successfully protecting the health of the people that live, work and visit New York City. It has had a variety of public health wins, despite the complexities of implementing programs in NYC. Mentoring other entities – other cities, states, non-profit and non-governmental organizations – on what works in promoting good, effective public health allows the NYC Health Department to share the expertise of one of the world’s premier health departments.
NYC has already initiated a national peer-to-peer mentoring model, the Big Cities Health Coalition, to bring together directors of the largest local health departments in the U.S. to discuss topics of shared concern. The group formed an online “virtual workspace”(www.bigcitieshealthcoalition.org) with grant funding, where members can share challenges and successful approaches in real time. Through this initiative, the NYC Health Department has been providing support on an informal basis to other jurisdictions who are implementing policy initiatives spearheaded in NYC.
Learn more about the areas where the NYC Health Department is providing national models and leadership by clicking the program links below.