Data Modernization and Informatics

ASTHO is committed to advancing public health data modernization, which is vital to the central mission of public health: promoting and protecting the health of all people.

Public health data and surveillance systems support both routine operations and emergency response, with modern data platforms mobilizing faster and more accurate data — enabling experts to make informed decisions that best support our communities. When they’re at their best, these systems paint a complete picture that allows public health and health care to connect relevant data from various sources and, in turn, better understand individual and population health, and design optimal interventions.

To best support this crucial work, ASTHO has a dedicated Public Health Data Modernization and Informatics team, which works to help strengthen public health data systems and data sharing at all levels: local, state, federal, and across public health and health care. The team aids public health agencies in their data modernization efforts in several key ways:

• Uniting health agencies and private partners through the Public Health Data Consortium, to enhance public health data that informs population health decisions and our understanding of long-term outcomes.
• Offering technical implementation services through the Implementation Center Program.
• Pinpointing sustainable funding structures for data modernization work.
• Convening key thought leaders through the Joint Public Health Informatics Task Force and ASTHO’s Informatics and Data Modernization Network.
• Providing direct technical assistance for data modernization activities.

In addition, ASTHO’s Public Health Data Modernization and Informatics team has developed, and continues to expand upon, a wealth of resources that prove indispensable in agencies’ data modernization journeys — detailing strategies for implementing successful data modernization efforts, covering legal and policy considerations, sharing agencies’ experiences (successes and challenges), and more. Explore these and additional topics in the resources that follow.