By Dawn Berney

The Environmental Public Health Tracking system (EPHT) is looking for members for our Evaluation Stakeholders Workgroup. The Wisconsin Environmental Public Health Tracking (WI EPHT) website provides data and information about environment and health in one location. The health topics focus on chronic diseases like asthma and cancer. In addition, the website offers summary reports of the environmental health in each county, called the County Environmental Health Profile.

As we continue to move ahead with the EPHT, I would like to revise our evaluation plan by pulling together an EPHT evaluation team. It won’t be a large group, but it will be made of people who may be interested in defining questions to be addressed by the EPHT evaluation and using those findings.  The evaluation team will be made up of EPHT staff as well as from data providers and users, individuals from government, nonprofits, representatives of potentially affected communities, and public health practitioners.  I only expect this group to meet once or twice and I’d love to get an evaluator either from UW-Milwaukee SPH or someone else from the area who would be interested in this project. I think it is so important that the EPHT can really be used out in the community to identify issues and then help to develop public health actions.

You can find more information on our website at: http://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/EPHT/

If you might be interested please get in touch with Dawn Berney at dawn.berney@wi.gov or (608)267-3830.

Dawn Berney, Evaluation Specialist Supporting, Bureau of Environmental and Occupational Health

Department of Health Services, 1 West Wilson Street, Room 150, Madison, WI 53702