National Public Health Week, April 1-7, Will Be Recognized Through Daily Themes

Montgomery County will commemorate National Public Health Week (NPHW), April 1-7, by highlighting daily themes through a series of social media posts and hosting community events. This year’s theme is “Protecting, Connecting and Thriving: We Are All Public Health.”

The spotlighted daily themes can be found on the County’s Department of Health and Human Services’ (DHHS) X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook platforms in addition to Healthy Montgomery’s X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.

The daily themes are:

• Civic Engagement (Monday)
• Healthy Neighborhoods (Tuesday)
• Climate Change (Wednesday)
• New Tools and Innovations (Thursday)
• Reproductive and Sexual Health (Friday)
• Emergency Preparedness (Saturday)

“Recently, Montgomery County was named one of the healthiest counties in the State of Maryland for health care resources and outcomes,” said County Executive Marc Elrich. “A strong public health system creates healthier families, stronger communities and improves the quality of life for all. During National Public Health Week, we are promoting the theme of ‘Protecting, Connecting and Thriving: We are All Public Health.’ If you can, join our virtual public health events throughout this week that offer information on how to improve your health and some of the work we are doing.”

Residents are invited to attend the NPHW events:

• Tuesday, April 2. 6:30-7:30 p.m. GardenRx: Cultivating Health through Gardening, By Gardening and Beats. Gardening Educator: Kimani Anku. Brigadier General Charles E McGee Library, 900 Wayne Avenue, Silver Spring. The event is free, but registration is required.
• Wednesday, April 3. 5-6 p.m. via Zoom. Zip Code and Health Equity Report Presentation. Presenters: Chunfu Liu and Nathan Lorei. Montgomery County has consistently ranked No. 1 for overall health outcomes in Maryland by County Health Rankings since 2014. Despite this, a close examination of population subgroups and geographic areas reveals great disparities in health outcomes and factors contributing to health outcomes across communities and population subgroups within the County. Together, the Zip Code Ranking Project and the Health Equity Report will inform approaches in prevention, promotion, policy, practice and planning for existing and new health programs to meet the public health needs of Montgomery County. The event is free, but registration is required.
• Wednesday, April 3. 4-5:30 p.m. via Zoom. Conversations on Climate Change: Perspectives from Students and Professionals. Presenters: Laura Anderko and Advika Agarwal. Speakers will share their work and connection to climate change, how it has impacted them and why/how they are involved in the climate change/environmental health space. Panel will be opened at the end of the presentation to discussion and questions from the audience. The event is free, but registration is required. Target Audience: Youth, grades 6-12 (primary audience); general public (secondary audience)
• Thursday, April 4. 10 a.m.-Noon via Zoom. The Intersection of Community Risk Reduction and Public Health. Presenters: Beth Anne Nesselt, Lt. Irvin Smith, Oscar Mendez and Anthony Ramirez. This session promises to shed light on critical connections between community risk reduction and public health, with a focus on the invaluable insights garnered from the Montgomery County Fire Rescue Service's experience. Speakers will share innovative strategies, collaborative approaches and best practices aimed at enhancing community well-being and safety. The event is free, but registration is required.

Public health promotes and protects the health of people and communities where they live, learn, work and play. Public Health Services' programs, part of DHHS, monitor health status and implement intervention strategies to contain or prevent disease (including bio-terrorism and emerging diseases); foster public-private partnerships, which increase access to health services; develop and implement programs and strategies to address health needs; provide individual- and community-level health education; evaluate the effectiveness of public health programs and strategies; license and inspect facilities and institutions affecting public health and safety; and monitor, assess and communicate community population health data and information via Healthy Montgomery, the County’s community health improvement effort.

DHHS is also hosting several staff appreciation events throughout the week.

NPHW is sponsored by the American Public Health Association, the national membership and advocacy organization for public health. Read more about NPHW on the association’s website.

Follow DHHS on X (formerly Twitter) and on Facebook. Follow Healthy Montgomery on X and Instagram. Follow NPHW on X.