For professionals working in the public health field, leadership skills are essential. Public health leaders provide vision, stability, and innovation to address some of the ongoing and intermittent crises in the field. Leadership in public health includes the willingness to communicate, collaborate, and change to improve the health of a community. Some qualities that a public health leader should have include:
- honesty and integrity;
- interpersonal communication skills;
- problem-solving skills;
- decision-making capacity;
- willingness to engage in cross-sector partnerships and collaborations; and
- commitment, passion, and empowerment.
The Region IV Public Health Training Center (R-IV PHTC) is dedicated to helping public health professionals develop their leadership qualities through a range of on-line and in-person training opportunities. In April 2018, the R-IV PHTC and the Mississippi Public Health Association hosted an all-day Public Health Leadership Symposium in Madison, MS for 36 invited participants identified as emerging leaders. Included in this symposium was the R-IV PHTC workshop “Increasing Leadership Skills through Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence.” This workshop has become one of the PHTC’s most in-demand offerings region-wide.
Mississippi Public Health Leadership Symposium Participants