The 2012 Annual Educational Conference for the North Carolina Public Health Association will take place in New Bern and will be held Wednesday, September 19 through Friday September 21, 2012.

Date: Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Time: 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET

You've heard that Electronic Health Records (EHRs) can help improve quality of care, reduce medical errors, increase patient satisfaction, and enhance office efficiency. But do they make sense for local health departments?

The adoption of Health Information Technology (HIT) by local health departments holds the promise of improving the quality and coordination of care in the community while providing earlier detection of outbreaks and the support required for evidence-based programs and policy. EHRs are a critical component of a health department’s HIT plans.

Join NCPHA and Netsmart for this valuable, no-cost Web seminar that addresses critical HIT concerns specific to local health departments, including:

• What is Public Health Information Technology?
• What are the benefits of EHRs for local health departments?
• What should a local health department consider when evaluating EHRs?

Presented by: Zach Zettler, Senior Vice President, Netsmart Technologies

Register today for this informative and timely Joint Web seminar – visit www.ntst.com/NCPHA

LEARN MORE about how Netsmart solutions and services work for local health departments, including product information, demonstrations and case studies.

The 2011 Annual Educational Conference was September 21-23 at Charlotte Hilton University Place. We had many educational sessions covering all aspects of public health. Congratulations to our NCPHA award winners and this year's Public Health All Stars. The recipients are listed in the stories below.

The results of the 5K Public Health Matters race are in. Congratulations to Chris Zona and Jen Dausner our fastest man and woman. Check out the full race results.

We appreciate our sponsors who helped to make this event happen: NCAPHA, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, Carolinas HealthCare System, Coca-Cola, University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina, Netsmart Technologies, NCALHD, ANCBH, and Onslow Memorial Hospital

Thank you to Charles McKenzie for capturing the event. See his pictures at http://www.charlesmckenziephotography.com and use the password NCPHA2011.

Want to learn more? Check out the conference page.

We'll see you next year.

The following were presented awards at the Annual Educational Conference for their outstanding service:

• Reynolds Award--Phillip Tarte, Union County
• Norton Group Award--The Sparrow Project, Robeson County
• Rankin Award--Holland "Dusty" Braudis Leonard, Jr., Guilford County
• Distinguished Service Award--Rodney Arvento Dancy, Wilson County
• Citation of Merit Award--Debbie Dutton, Dare County
• Partners in Public Health Distinguished Group Award--Park Ridge Hospital and Pardee Hospital of Henderson County