Objectives include: 1.Create an inclusive Ohio-wide PHPBRN. 2.Improve the efficiency and efficacy of public health practice through research involving the quality of provision of essential public health services. 3.Share research tasks among many local health departments in order to decrease the burden of effort and to achieve valid and generalizable outcomes. 4.Establish ongoing commitment to organizational structure; support of network members; collaboration between public health practice and academic public health; and expansion of the research network activities. 5.Investigate the scope of data sources common among local health departments. 6.Link local health department practitioners with investigators experienced in PHPBRNs. 7.Facilitate involvement of health professions students in population health research. 8.Assure research is driven by RAPHI members and bears pragmatic significance to public health practice. 9.Identify and act on funding opportunities.

All Ohio local health departments are invited to participate. Initial focus will be on the local health departments that are affiliated with the five academic public health programs located across Ohio (Case Western Reserve University MPH program; Ohio State University College of Public Health; Northwest Ohio Consortium MPH program {University of Toledo and Bowling Green State University}; Wright State University MPH program; and University of Cincinnati MPH program) and the Ohio Department of Health.

Affiliated local health departments represent a balance of large and small health departments in both highly populated and rural areas of Ohio including Ohio's largest cities. While research decisions will be driven by RAPHI members, initial research focus will be placed on the use of public health informatics for 1) continuous quality improvement and 2) community health assessment and surveillance; and 3) the use of public health financial performance indicators in local health departments.

Source: Case Western Reserve University