Public Health Accreditation Board

Accreditation and Recognition Program:The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) is the voluntary national accreditation program for tribal, state, local, and territorial, governmental public health departments. Through the national accreditation program, PHAB works to transform the public health system by (1) setting standards and measures that define excellence in public health department performance, (2) encouraging public health departments to engage in quality improvement, (3) expanding the evidence base of public health practice, and ultimately (4) improving the population's health. See Schedule O For Continuation.The Accreditation program includes programmatic modules that have their own standards and measures for Vital Records/Health Statistics Units (VRHS), and US Army Public Health installations. These are both part of the Accreditation Program and follow the same workflow. PHAB launched two new products in July 2023. The first was Readiness Assessment and Training, a pre-requisite to all other recognition and accreditation programs that helps health department assess if they are ready to move forward. The second product is a recognition program called Pathways to assist health departments to take a smaller first step towards full national public health accreditation.

Education Services: PHAB provides training on the accreditation process that is thorough and appropriate for all applicants. PHAB also develops specific training sessions on the selection, preparation, and the role and functions of the Accreditation staff. Education is provided based on the needs of the target audience (Site Visitors, Accreditation Coordinators, other stakeholders). Most of education services are covered by Accrediation and Recognition Program Revenue with the occasional external engagement request.

PHAB Center for Innovation:The PHAB Center for Innovation serves as a national initiative guiding health departments in using innovation as a tool to drive change and improve health and equity. The Center for Innovation: a) Drives public health transformation through collaboration, thought leadership, and systems-based learning; b) Collaborates with partners to explore how equity is and should be embedded in public health transformation, including developing strategies to implement innovation processes that intentionally include equitable practices; c) Provides a learning space for health departments' innovations; See Schedule O For Continuation.d) Identifies and fosters innovations in health departments and public health system by: 1) Collecting lessons learned and success stories from grantee programs and learning comm; 2) Developing and sharing resources, tools, education, and expertise to guide health departments in developing or replication innovations in their community; 3) Connecting innovators within public health and across sectors; 4) Monitors, disseminates, and builds the science of public health innovation.