Later in the program (4:50), Timothy McCall, NACCHO’s Director of Research, hosted a discussion with co-authors Rita Burke, Associate Professor of Clinical Population and Public Health Sciences and Pediatrics at theUniversity of Southern California Keck School of Medicine; Larissa Chiari-Keith, Chief Executive Officer ofAlala Advisors; and Emma Hunter, Health Emergency Preparedness Analyst atSan Mateo County Health, to talk about theirrecently published qualitative analysisof California public health officials’ experiences of harassment during COVID-19.
NACCHO's Forces of Change survey found that 60% of local health departments reported their agency, leadership, and/or staff were targeted with harassment during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact,one study found that 20% of Americansfelt that harassing public health leaders was justified early in the pandemic; this rose to 25% in 2021. Even though this harassment crisis surfaced three years ago, the impacts on individuals, communities, and the public health system persist.
NACCHO is drawing attention to this urgent issue. The study aimed to collect qualitative data highlighting the harrowing stories from local health officials and to better understand their experiences of harassment. The pandemic not only exposed vulnerabilities in the public health and healthcare system, but it also subjected local health officials to psychological impacts, systemic backlash, and burnout.
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