Dr. Monsen has had a long career working in the field of nursing informatics.1 She has been an instrumental leader in the Omaha System community of practice. She has a wealth of knowledge and experience in data management and has helped countless health care agencies, Omaha System users, and public health workers improve their data documentation and data management, as well as educate on how that data can be leveraged in meaningful ways.

In March of 2024, Thad Shunkwiler, LMFT, LPCC, ACS, CCMHC presented at one of Champ Software’s Expert Webinars, examining drug use trends among adolescents and the impact of drug use on the physical and psychological well-being of the user as well as prevention and intervention strategies public health professionals and others can employ to address this issue.

Tanya Carter is the Suicide Prevention Supervisor at the Minnesota Department of Health, with over 20 years of experience in community education program development and crisis intervention. She is passionate about suicide prevention and reducing the stigma related to mental illness.

Patrick Stieg is a Certified Health Education Specialist with 35 years of professional experience in public health education, health promotion, and policy development. His career has spanned 17 years in state and county public health departments, 12 years at a voluntary health organization, at both the national and state level, and 6 years at a health plan. He also has extensive experience at the national, state, and local level in public and professional education as well as experience in public policy advocacy around the primary prevention of chronic diseases. Patrick volunteers on several statewide health-related boards and commissions as well as government parks and trails and recreation commissions at the municipal, county, and state level.

This article is Part 1 of a two-part series covering a presentation made by Karen A. Monsen, PhD, RN, FAAN, Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. This presentation was made in October 2017 at the Michigan Premier Public Health Conference. Dr. Monsen describes her experience over the course of her career, working with social behavioral determinants of health outcomes data and finding powerful ways to collect the data, interpret the data, and leverage the data to affect policy and inform community health decision-making.

This article is Part 1 of a two-part series covering a presentation made by Karen A. Monsen, PhD, RN, FAAN, Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. This presentation was made in October 2017 at the Michigan Premier Public Health Conference. Dr. Monsen describes her experience over the course of her career, working with social behavioral determinants of health outcomes data and finding powerful ways to collect the data, interpret the data, and leverage the data to affect policy and inform community health decision-making.

This article covers a topic that is part of Champ Software’s Expert Webinar series in which subject matter experts present on trending or urgent public health topics