3 min read

Episode #241 Everyday Public Health, With Jordyn Fink

On This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast

Welcome back to the Public Health Epidemiology Conversations playlist! We’re glad you joined us. Our guest on this episode is Jordyn Fink, public health specialist at the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Clinic. Tune in to hear all about her work with lead testing and more, and find out how she is working to include technical support for communities. You’ll hear about grant allocation, and the vast variation in the field of public health, as well as why her work is important in the community she serves. Jordyn helps listeners to get a greater grasp of what public health entails and how we encounter it in our daily lives, with infectious enthusiasm for the field. In closing, she shares her hope to motivate others to explore a career in the field of public health after having shared her own experience of getting to know and love her work. Thanks for tuning in!

Meet Jordyn Fink

Jordyn has her Bachelor of Science in Community Health Education from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse. She currently works at Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center as a Public Health Specialist. She has worked with Tribal communities for almost five years. Being born and raised in Wisconsin, there are 11 federally recognized tribes in the state of Wisconsin. Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center (GLITEC) has served the 34 federally-recognized Tribes, four urban Indian communities, and three Indian Health Service (IHS) service units within the Bemidji IHS Area—Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Chicago, Illinois.

Listen To This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast

Conversation Highlights

An introduction to today’s guest, Jordyn Fink, public health specialist at the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Clinic.
How she landed on a career in public health after having gone in with an undeclared major.
Her responsibilities include grant work, program coordination, developing best practice for lead testing, and more.
Other projects she is working on include technical support for communities.
What their community involvement has looked like pre- and post- COVID.
The many areas where their grants are directed.
Why Jordyn loves the field of public health.
Why her work is important in the community she serves.
Examples of public health in daily life including applying sunscreen and health education.
Her advice to students: take an introductory class to public health and do a job shadow.
Her experience volunteering in student organizations to promote health education.
Her hope that listeners will join the public health field.
Where to find out more about the tribal centers.
How to share and review this podcast to help us grow.

Jordyn's Career Advice To Public Health Students and Graduates

"Participate in student organizations & volunteer/shadow a variety of jobs – I was part of UWL’s Eta Sigma Gamma – Beta Phi Chapter Health Education Honorary Society. This lead me to meet others who were just as passionate with public health. I was able to gain some volunteer experience, and hear from other Alumni on their careers after graduation." - Jordyn Fink

Tribal Epidemiology Centers

Tribal Epidemiology Centers (TEC) are Indian Health Service (IHS), division funded organizations who serve American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Tribal and urban communities by managing public health information systems, investigating diseases of concern, managing disease prevention and control programs, responding to public health emergencies, and coordinating these activities with other public health authorities.

Tribal Epidemiology Centers provide various types of support and services due to the variation of the TECs organization structure, divisions, Tribal populations, and their mission and goals. There are currently 12 Tribal Epidemiology Centers in the United States.

Each month, one of the Tribal Epidemiology Centers will be featured here on the podcast. The purpose is to raise awareness throughout the public health community of the amazing and important public health work that is being done at each of the centers.

In this episode, we will feature the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center.

Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center

The Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center serves 34 Tribes, three Service Units and four Urban Indian Health Programs. GLITEC is in its twentieth year of operation, originating in 1996. Program advisement is provided through each state’s Tribal Health Director’s Association.

GLITEC staff strives to support Tribal communities in their efforts to improve health by building capacity to collect and use data while advocating on the local, state and national levels to improve data quality.