The Miami-Dade County Health Department (MDCHD) continues its journey of performance excellence. This is a journey that began in 1997 for the MDCHD. It was then that the MDCHD adopted the Sterling Management Model which is based on the National Malcolm Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. The MDCHD has been recognized twice by the Florida Sterling Council as an organization worthy of the Governor’s Sterling Award (2002 & 2006). The MDCHD feels that as an organization, it has changed since 2006, but the continuous improvement attitude is something that has not. That is why the MDCHD is considering applying once again for this prestigious award. At the end of the day, it is not the award that attracts the MDCHD to apply for such recognition. It is the value that the whole process of applying brings to the organization. This process allows the MDCHD to conduct a self assessment and identify what are the areas that the MDCHD is excelling in, but also where are the opportunities for improvement. It also allows the MDCHD to receive feedback from experts in performance excellence to determine if the organization is on the right track. It is important to identify those key areas that may need improvement to assist the MDCHD in supporting the Florida Department of Health’s mission of protecting and promoting the health of all residents and visitors in the state through organized state and community efforts, including cooperative agreements with counties.The MDCHD is also very enthusiastic about becoming one of the first health departments to be accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). PHAB developed a national voluntary accreditation program for state, local, territorial and tribal public health departments. The goal of the accreditation program is to improve and protect the health of every community by advancing the quality and performance of public health departments. The MDCHD had the opportunity to participate as a beta site during the pilot conducted by PHAB. From fall 2009 through the end of 2010, the MDCHD joined 30 public health departments throughout the United States to participate in such pilot. PHAB has announced the launch of the accreditation program for the end of 2011. The MDCHD is hopeful that it has what it takes to become part of an esteemed group of health departments.
