Public Health Bulletins

RESOURCES

CDC Foundation-Lead Initiative

The purpose of a Public Health Bulletin (PHB) is to deliver to health professionals and the public an authoritative, timely, and influential source of information and recommendations for actions to protect the public’s health. The CDC and the CDC Foundation work with ministries of health or other government entities to develop and produce a country-owned PHB that serves as the voice of the government, alerting professionals and the public to public health threats, sharing updates on the control of infectious diseases and other health problems, and providing clinical recommendations and other guidance.

Technical assistance includes:

A community of practice of PHB Editors of Bangladesh, Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia
Annual workshops that bring PHB Editors together to share experiences and build skills in strategic thinking and promoting the PHB (e.g. branding)
Customized trainings in scientific communications and peer review
Face-to-face meetings with stakeholders to assist with strategic planning and promote the PHB to internal stakeholders.

To help countries launch a PHB, CDC and CDC Foundation developed A National Public Health Bulletin – Considerations for its Development. The publication is a resource for getting started. It includes the rationale for producing a PHB and summarizes the qualities that distinguish it from other government-sponsored public health publications. It also describes activities and standard operating procedures necessary for producing and disseminating a PHB, and provides templates of work plans, position descriptions, communication strategies, and budgets.