2020-16260. Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations

AGENCY:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION:

Notice with comment period.

SUMMARY:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as part of its continuing effort to reduce public burden and maximize the utility of government information, invites the general public and other Federal agencies the opportunity to comment on a proposed and/or continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This notice invites comment on a proposed information collection project titled on Public Health Associate Program (PHAP) Alumni and Host Site Assessment. This project is designed to assess the quality and value of the Public Health Associate Programs. The collection of information will inform program improvements and future decision making.

DATES:

CDC must receive written comments on or before September 28, 2020.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CDC-2020-0081, by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection Review Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS-D74, Atlanta, Georgia 30329.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name and Docket Number. CDC will post, without change, all relevant comments to Regulations.gov. Please note: Submit all comments through the Federal eRulemaking portal (regulations.gov) or by U.S. mail to the address listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request more information on the proposed project or to obtain a copy of the information collection plan and instruments, contact Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection Review Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS-D74, Atlanta, Georgia 30329; phone: [phone]; Email: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), Federal agencies must obtain approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of information they conduct or sponsor. In addition, the PRA also requires Federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each new proposed collection, each proposed extension of existing collection of information, and each reinstatement of previously approved information collection before submitting the collection to the OMB for approval. To comply with this requirement, we are publishing this notice of a proposed data collection as described below.

The OMB is particularly interested in comments that will help:

1. Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;

2. Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

4. Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submissions of responses.

5. Assess information collection costs.

Proposed Project

Public Health Associate Program (PHAP) Alumni and Host Site Assessment (OMB Control No. 0920-1078, Exp. 03/31/2021)—Extension—Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support (CSTLTS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) works to protect America from health, safety and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. CDC strives to fulfill this mission, in part, through a competent and capable public health workforce. One mechanism to developing the public health workforce is through training programs like the Public Health Associate Program (PHAP).

The mission of the Public Health Associate Program (PHAP) is to train and provide experiential learning to early career professionals who contribute to the public health workforce. PHAP targets recent graduates with bachelors or masters degrees who are beginning a career in public health. Each year, a new cohort of up to 200 associates is enrolled in the program. Associates are CDC employees who complete two-year assignments in a host site (i.e., a state, tribal, local, or territorial health department or non-profit organization). Host sites design their associates' assignments to meet their agency's unique needs while also providing on-the-job experience that prepare associates for future careers in public health. At host sites, associates are mentored by members of the public health workforce (referred to as “host site supervisors”). It is the goal of PHAP that following participation in the two-year program, alumni will seek employment within the public health system (i.e., federal, state, tribal, local, or territorial health agencies, or non-governmental organizations), focusing on public health, population health, or health care.

Efforts to systematically evaluate PHAP began in 2014 and continue to date. Evaluation priorities focus on continuously learning about program processes and activities to improve the program's quality and documenting program outcomes to demonstrate impact and inform decision making about future program direction.

The purpose of this ICR is to collect information from two key stakeholder groups (host site supervisors and alumni) via two distinct surveys. The information collected will enable CDC to; a) learn about program processes and activities to improve the program's quality, and b) document program outcomes to demonstrate impact and inform decision making about future program direction. The results of these surveys may be published in peer reviewed journals and/or in non-scientific publications such as practice reports and/or fact sheets.

The respondent universe is comprised of PHAP host site supervisors and PHAP alumni. Both surveys will be administered electronically; a link to the survey websites will be provided in the email invitation. The PHAP Host Site Supervisor survey will be deployed once every two years to all active PHAP host site supervisors. The total estimated burden is 20 minutes per respondent per survey.

The PHAP Alumni Survey will be administered at three different time points (one year post-graduation, three years post-graduation, and five years post-graduation) to PHAP alumni. Assessment questions will remain consistent at each administration (i.e., one year, three years, or five years post-PHAP graduation). The language, however, will be updated for each survey administration to reflect the appropriate time period. The total estimated burden is eight minutes per respondent per survey. The total annualized estimated burden is 213 hours.

Estimated Annualized Burden Hours

Type of respondents	Form name	Number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Average burden per respondent (in hrs.)	Total burden (in hrs.)
PHAP Host Site Supervisors	PHAP Host Site Supervisor Survey	400	1	20/60	133
PHAP Alumni	PHAP Alumni Survey	600	1	8/60	80
Total					213

Jeffrey M. Zirger,

Lead, Information Collection Review Office, Office of Scientific Integrity, Office of Science, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.