Northwest Center for Public Health Practice

Public Health Training, Research, and Evaluation for the Northwest

Hot Topics in Practice is a monthly webinar forum to discuss issues currently affecting public health practice.

Each month guest speakers from local, state, tribal, and national public health organizations present and take questions from the audience. Hot Topics is moderated by Allene Mares.

Next Session

Hot Topics Is Going On Summer Break

Our next Hot Topics session will be in September, 2021. To receive an announcement when we have our next session scheduled, join our mailing list.

We've covered many aspects of the COVID-19 response through Hot Topics in Practice over this past year. Check out the Hot Topics archives to see our past presentations.

Previous Sessions

Below you may browse previous Hot Topics webinar sessions. All are available for viewing in PH LearnLink free of charge.

Supporting Emotional Wellness in Frontier Areas

November 27, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Judith LaPan, MS, MBA, discusses how her rural Montana health department adopted an emergency response framework to better support emotional health in their community.

Photograph of two people on the end of a dock seen from a distance.

Building Vaccine Confidence Through Messaging

October 24, 2018

In this one-hour webinar, communications professor Devon Greyson explores ways to help public health professionals and clinical providers speak about vaccinations.

Smoke-Ready Communities During Severe Wildfires

September 25, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Sarah Coefield, MS, discusses how the Missoula City-County Health Department supported public health during the 2017 summer wildfire season.

Photograph of a forested mountainside after a wildfire seen through thick smoke.

Healthy Aging in Oregon

August 28, 2018

In this one-hour webinar, Kirsten Aird, MPH, shares Oregon's approach to engaging older populations in addressing health across the lifespan.

Photograph of two women looking at ocean waves.

Positioning a Local Public Health Agency as the Chief Health Strategist

July 24, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Public Health Director Dawn Emerick shares how her division embraced the Chief Health Strategist role to better work with new partners and demonstrate their agency’s value to the community.

Public Health Communications For Hurricane Maria Response

June 27, 2018

In this one-hour webinar, Maria Levis, CEO of Impactivo, reviews how her team deployed creative communication strategies to address public health issues in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

Photograph of satellite dish that has been destroyed by a storm.

Investigating Maternal Mortality in Washington State

May 29, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Alexis Bates reviews why maternal deaths in the United States have risen since the 1980s, and what is being done both locally and nationally to address the issue.

Photograph of a woman and young boy.

Real Estate and Design as Public Health Practice

April 25, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, planner and architect Erin Christensen Ishizaki explains how her work uses public health research and design as interventions to reduce chronic disease.

Photograph of outdoor seating at a restaurant.

Trauma-Informed Practice – a Rural Perspective

March 27, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Karolyn Holden, Director, Grays Harbor County Public Health and Social Services, shares how her rural public health agency took deliberate steps toward building a more trauma-informed practice.

Photograph of a stethoscope resting on a hand-drawn heart.

Youth Voice in Alaska’s Health Projects

February 20, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Jennifer Baker, Adolescent Health Project Coordinator for the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, shares tested strategies for getting and keeping youth engaged in prevention efforts.

Photograph of several teens clasping hands in the center of a circle.

Tobacco 21 in Oregon

January 30, 2018

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Luci Longoria, MPH, shares how Oregon joined the growing movement of states and localities to raise the tobacco purchasing age to 21.

Photograph of several teens hanging out.

Messaging Health Equity to Decision-makers

December 20, 2017

In this one-hour Hot Topics webinar, Jennifer Messenger Heilbronner shares strategies for messaging health equity to decision-makers.

Photograph of a woman giving testimony.

Connecting Brain and Social Development to Injury Prevention

November 28, 2017

In this one-hour webinar, Karyn Brownson, MSW, explores the latest research linking brain and social development with injury prevention.

Change Management Principles for Public Health Modernization

October 24, 2017

In this one-hour webinar, Public Health Director Dawn Emerick describes how a local health department in Oregon used change management principles to restructure in advance of the state’s modernization efforts.

Big Data, Big Headache?: How Non-Statisticians Can Approach and Use Data for Performance Management

September 26, 2017

In this one-hour webinar, Policy Administrator Stefan Johansson discusses using data to drive performance in Wyoming state government.