The Center for Public Health Medical Sciences (CPHMS) has expertise in medicine, epidemiology, outbreak investigation and public health practice. We are made up of epidemiologists, nurses, and physicians.
CPHMS follows the principle of “One Health” in the work that we do. One Health is a collaborative effort of multiple disciplines working locally, nationally, and globally to improve the health of our ecosystem. This includes humans, animals, plants, and our environment. One Health promotes multi-sectoral and cross-disciplinary collaboration to solve health challenges.
We represent One Health, and our wide expertise includes:
- Behavioral health
- Environmental health
- Outbreaks
- Communicable diseases
- Healthcare systems support
We work closely with people and programs within the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), local health jurisdictions (LHJs), and Tribal Nations. We specifically have expertise in outbreak investigations and serve as the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) training office.
Our center currently has 2 EIS officers who support statewide outbreak investigations and are an integral part of our team. We also have senior level disease investigators that assist LHJs, tribes, and our state.
At CPHMS, our priorities are:
- Maintaining an accurate and timely surveillance system for notifiable conditions
- Prioritizing clear, timely communication with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Providing clear responses in the event of a disease outbreak as informed by our surveillance system and guidance from CDC