Three new public health topic pages, Bioterrorism, Environmental Health and HIV/AIDS have been added to the Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce Web site, http://PHPartners.org. The topic pages provide links to authoritative, reviewed online content and are divided by sub-topics relevant to each topic. The topic pages were developed by librarians with review assistance from public health professionals with the intent of making public health information easier to find. In this article I will provide a sampling of what you will find on the topic pages, but there is a lot more to explore.

Accessing the Topic Pages
The topic pages can be accessed from the drop-down menu on the PHPartners home page.

Bioterrorism Topic Page
The Bioterrorism page includes access to information on specific biological and chemical threats, how to prepare for a possible bioterrorist attack, and education and training resources.

Go to "Biological/Chemical Agents & Other Threats" to get information on anthrax, botulism, smallpox, and other agents.

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology provides fact sheets on anthrax, botulism, plague, and smallpox.

The "Education and Training" section links to online training course, videos, and satellite broadcasts on bioterrorism and other public health emergencies.

The Michigan Center for Public Health Preparedness supports preparedness efforts of state and local health departments nationwide and provides access to free competency-based online courses and webcasts.

Environmental Health Topic Page
The Environmental Health page includes information on children's environmental health, air and water quality issues, and information on hazardous substances such as lead, mold and pesticides.

Click on "Hazardous Substances" to learn more about the health effects and control measures for lead, mercury, and mold contamination.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency provides information on mold targeted to both consumers and environmental health professionals.

The "Data Tools and Statistics" section provides access to data and mapping tools on environmental health information including trends in water and air pollution and toxic releases at international, national, and local levels.

Enter a zip code and access air quality rankings from Scorecard: Pollution in Your Community

HIV/AIDS Topic page
The HIV/AIDS page includes links to prevention and education resources, research activities, surveillance data, and lots more.

HIV/AIDS prevention strategies from the Centers for Disease Control Prevention

HIV/AIDS statistics on HIV transmission from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Global statistics on the prevalence of HIV in Africa from the U.S. Census Bureau HIV/AIDS Surveillance Data Base

Check out the new topic pages when you get the chance, and if you know of any good resources that should be on PHPartners.org, you can submit the link at http://phpartners.org/suggestlink.html. To keep up-to-date with public health news and new content posted to the site, you can subscribe to the PHPartners.org weekly email announcement list, linked from the home page of PHPartners.org.

Developing the topic pages was a challenge, yet very rewarding once they were done. I had an active part in their development and I would love to hear back from you and know what you think. We are always trying to come up with better ways to reach out to the public health workforce to meet their needs. If you have any questions or ideas for public health outreach in the region, I would love to hear from you. I can be reached at 508-856-2085 or Hathy.Simpson@umassmed.edu.

Hathy Simpson, MPH
Public Health Coordinator