The Importance of Governance in Data Modernization

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This entry is part 6 of 6 in the series Innovations in Informatics

By now, every public health professional has at least heard the term data modernization. But what does it actually mean, and why are so many public health agencies creating teams focused on this effort? Recent events, such as COVID and mpox, have shown the sheer volume of data that public health has access to. Modernization efforts are working to harness the power of this data to support informed decisions that improve the health and well-being of the communities we serve. What modernization looks like in practice encompasses a wide range of initiatives from systems improvements to workforce development to strategic partnerships.

In early 2021, I got the chance to jump into this exciting work directly as one of my first projects when I joined the Public Health Informatics Institute (PHII). PHII supports data modernization efforts within state, tribal, local and territorial (STLT) public health agencies through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We have developed a variety of offerings designed to foster a collaborative environment for data modernization leaders. These offerings include a Learning Community, a planning toolkit, virtual workshops and in-depth stories. (More details can be found at phii.org/data-modernization.)

Throughout the years, I’ve been amazed by the ingenuity and resilience of the people I’ve met who are working on modernization within agencies. PHII has cultivated strong relationships with STLT agencies, partners and the CDC through our ability to gather insights and deliver meaningful content. One Learning Community member told us they, “appreciate the variety of topics and participation by a wide range of jurisdictions,” adding that, “the topics seem more responsive to the community’s needs.”

A recurring request we’d received involved guidance and training around data governance for public health. While there are institutions that offer formal certifications in data governance, PHII, in collaboration with the CDC and national partners, identified a crucial gap: there were no existing trainings or communities that specifically supported data governance as it relates to public health. Now, you may be asking yourself, “Why is governance important to data modernization?” This is precisely the question data modernization teams were getting from their leadership and peers.  Without data governance, modernization projects run the risk of hitting roadblocks with legal hurdles or damaging crucial data-sharing relationships through mismanagement of data. 

To equip them with the knowledge and practical skills needed to address this question, PHII set out to develop a structured learning opportunity tailored to the unique challenges faced by data modernization teams in implementing data governance. Leveraging expertise from HLN Consulting and Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy, we developed a comprehensive curriculum. The result was the Data Governance Boot Camp, delivered over three virtual sessions and a two-day in-person event in the Spring of 2024. 

The Boot Camp curriculum provided presentations, discussions, hands-on activities and extensive resources that the participants could bring back to their organization, applying them directly to their work to build governance structures in their agencies. For the in-person sessions, we encouraged relationship-building among participants by offering networking lunches and optional team-building activities, such as an eclipse viewing, board games and even a ping-pong tournament. At the end of the first day, we broke for a team-building exercise, and I had the pleasure of watching a talented group of dedicated problem-solvers apply their skills to the most epic game of Jenga I have ever witnessed. Clearly, this is a group that can remain cool and calm under pressure!

Ultimately, we brought together 99 individuals from across 37 states, 5 local agencies, 6 territories and freely associated states, along with 5 partner agencies and the CDC. But despite this success, we recognized we’d reached only a small fraction of public health agencies that could benefit from this content. So, in order to expand the Boot Camp’s impact, PHII contracted with an instructional design expert from Tencza Designs to translate its curriculum into an asynchronous online course. Our goal was to not only provide an online platform for the content delivered during the Boot Camp but to incorporate aspects of the dynamic learning experience by providing the following modalities:

  • Compelling use cases: Real-world examples of data governance implementation in public health settings.
  • Practical activities: Hands-on exercises to solidify understanding and build critical skills.
  • Resources and templates: Downloadable content to be used by public health professionals in their own data governance work.
  • Engaging knowledge checks: Interactive quizzes to ensure learners retain key concepts.

Our development journey was marked by effective partnerships and community input. PHII’s approach, which involves continuous feedback gathering and incorporation of said feedback, ensured the training was relevant and that it provided public health professionals with applicable skills they could bring back to their agencies. Although the course was originally developed for data modernization teams, our course review team emphasized the broader impact of this work. As a result, PHII was able to create a robust online training program that can support data governance projects throughout all facets of public health, not just data modernization.

The success of the Data Governance Boot Camp and the creation of the online course highlight the importance of tailored training programs that address specific needs within the public health sector. As PHII continues to support data modernization efforts, the lessons learned from this initiative will undoubtedly inform future projects and collaborations. As someone who loves bringing people together and creating environments that merge meaningful education with memorable experiences, it was an honor to work with this great team to develop content and connections that participants will have for years to come.

Sarah Shaw serves as a senior informatics analyst for PHII.

About the Author

Sarah Shaw
Sarah Shaw, MPH, PMP, serves as a senior informatics analyst for PHII. Prior to coming to PHII, Sarah ran her own successful consulting firm, where she provided her expertise to health, IT and nonprofit companies.

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