HEALTH DEPARTMENT RECEIVES RECOGNITION
County only ninth in state to earn national accreditation
The Macomb County Health Department has been awarded national accreditation through the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB), only the ninth county in the state to earn such distinction and the first in southeastern Michigan.
Established in 2007, PHAB is the nonprofit organization that administers the national accreditation program, which aims to advance and transform public health practice by championing performance improvement, strong infrastructure and innovation.
The national accreditation program, which receives support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, sets standards against which the nation’s governmental public health departments can continuously improve the quality of their services and performance.
More than 80 percent of the U.S. population now reap the benefits of being served by a health department that has undergone PHAB’s rigorous, multi-faceted, peer-reviewed assessment process to ensure it meets a set of quality standards and measures.
“We are so pleased to be recognized by PHAB for achieving national standards that foster effectiveness and promote continuous quality improvement,” said Andrew Cox, director/ health officer of the Macomb County Health Department. “We hope this announcement, coming as it does in the midst of our ongoing public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic, will reassure our community, our partner organizations and our elected officials that the services we provide are as effective and responsive to the needs of our community. By continuing to improve our services and performance, we can be confident that we are meeting the public health needs of those we serve as effectively as possible.”
Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel said achieving the national accreditation was a two- to three-year process of “checking the boxes” to qualify for the recognition.
“We’re incredibly proud of our people working in the health department,” Hackel said.
“The Macomb County Health Department has shown time and time again that they are an incredible resource for this community — especially throughout this last year,” Hackel added. “From creating drivethrough COVID-19 testing sites, to developing and managing mass vaccination clinics, this team has faced every challenge head on and delivered innovative solutions to meet the needs of our residents. I am so proud to see them receive this public health accreditation, and to have them be recognized on the national level for the important work they do - which is ensuring the health, safety and wellness of our county.”
“This was an effort that took every single person. It takes a team effort to accomplish this achievement,” Cox added. “It was a an effort that was 12 domains of looking at measures that would indicate we have a community of cultural involvement, community partnerships and outreaches.”
According to the PHAB website, the other eight county health departments in Michigan that have received their accreditation include: the BarryEaton District Health Department (Charlotte); the Central Michigan District Health Department (Mount Pleasant); District Health Department #10 (Hart); the Ingham County Health Department (Lansing); the Kent County Health (Grand Rapids); the Livingston County Health Department (Howell); the Mid-Michigan District Health Department (Stanton); and Washtenaw County Public Health (Ypsilanti).
“The value of becoming nationally accredited through PHAB extends far beyond the interior walls of the health department,” said PHAB President and CEO Paul Kuehnert. “People living and working in communities served by these health departments can be assured that their health department is strong and has the capacity to protect and promote their health. Just going through the accreditation process itself helps health departments pinpoint the areas that are critical to improving the work they do for their communities.”