A New Approach to Public Health
Epi Bodhi, MSPH, Amherst Health Department, MA
As director of the Amherst Health Department, Epi Bodhi, MSPH, leads the department in systematically collecting, assembling, analyzing, and making available information on the health of the community. Bodhi and her public health colleagues develop and implement comprehensive public health policies, regulations, and legislation and provide services and educational opportunities that encourage healthy environments and lifestyles for the people of Amherst.
A simple brochure on how to become an agent of social change inspired Bodhi to do just that. She selected public health as the most meaningful way to bring about positive change in health. "I didn't want to be a social worker, because I didn't think I could make enough headway one person at a time," she explains. "Through public health I knew I could bring more resources to bear against the underlying health problems and in turn help more people."
Bodhi's solution for creating social change through public health is to shift thinking from the more narrow perspective of a service provider to a resource that focuses on social justice. "We can continue to do the work on the containment of infectious and chronic diseases, but we also must look at underlying causes and how these diseases are affecting all members of our community, especially people of color and those with low incomes," says Bodhi.
Bohdi brings together four core components-assurance, assessment, policy development, and promotion-to provide more effective public health services. Through assurance, all residents have access to the services they need to maintain or restore good health. The Amherst Health Department also systematically collects, assembles, analyzes, and makes available information regarding the health of the community. Finally, Bodhi and her colleagues develop and implement comprehensive public health policies, regulations, and legislation and provide services and educational opportunities that encourage healthy environments and lifestyles
"Public health is not about working in a silo," Bodhi states. "We work with city planning and the police and the schools to find ways to limit negative health influences and look at how we can change and improve the health of all of our citizens."