St. Louis Academic Health Department: The St. Louis Way

The St. Louis Academic Health Department (AHD) is a partnership between the City of St. Louis Department of Health, the Saint Louis County Department of Public Health, and the SLU College for Public Health and Social Justice (CPHSJ). The AHD is a partnership that promotes the health of all St. Louisans through the lens of equity and social justice.

AHD Leadership

• Saint Louis City: Fred Echols, M.D., Craig Schmid, JD
• Saint Louis County: Spring Schmidt, PdD(c) and Kate Donaldson MPH
• Saint Louis University: Pamela Xaverius, Ph.D., MBA and Darcy Scharff, Ph.D.

AHD Activities

Teaching

Practice-Based Adjunct Faculty and Guest Lecturers

• Health department staff members serve as adjunct faculty member at the CPHSJ.
• Health department staff members serve as regular guest lecturers for the MPH and undergraduate public health programs.
• Faculty members from the CPHSJ provide workshops/training to the staff at the City and County health departments.
• The AHD monitors the number of service, internship, and volunteer opportunities that result from student interaction with health department staff.

Student Internships

• Select City and County staff serve as internship preceptors.
• Students experience a streamlined process for internships at the City and County health departments.
  
  

Research

Shared Research and Policy Agenda

• This shared research agenda is tightly aligned with the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) of the City and County health departments. (Link to agenda when completed)

Research Projects

• Research projects are developed based on a shared research and policy agenda informed by the CHIP. The projects will be collaborative efforts between SLU and the City and County health departments.

Research Ambassadors Program

• The research ambassadors are a group of public health students interested in working with public health practitioners on short-term research and evaluation projects based on a junior college model.

Student Outbreak Response Team (SORT)

• SORT is a student-run organization within the CPHSJ that trains students to assist in outbreak response activities in the St. Louis area.
• SORT provides educational and professional development opportunities for students interested in emergency preparedness and infectious disease response.
• SORT participants are currently deployed to both the City and County health departments on an ad hoc basis.

Pop-Up Research Squads (PURS)

• PURS are short-term collaborations between SLU faculty researchers and health department staff.
• PURS are designed to provide each organization with additional resources to conduct public health research.
• Faculty, students and health department staff can request a squad to help with a research issue.

Workforce Development

• The training plan is based on previous assessments and national data that addresses the CHIP priorities.
• The plan guides the creation and identification of training opportunities for health department staff members.
• Link to plan when completed

• The City and County health departments provide training sessions for students and faculty on issues related to real-world public health practice.
• The CPHSJ provides continuing education programs based on the workforce development plans for staff at the City and County health departments.

Policy

• The AHD outlines and conducts policy activities that revolve around the shared research agenda.
• Policy initiatives are centered on social justice and equity as a means of improving the health of the community.