Public administrators in Mississippi have been aggressive in seeking federal grant funding, and between 2010 and 2014, they received $7.57 million in funding for efforts to prevent health conditions and improve public health infrastructure. The availability of this funding has a direct effect on the hiring of public health officials and helps raise the salary potential for these professionals.
Key public health officials in Mississippi include epidemiologists with the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) who monitor the 29 diseases that healthcare providers are mandated to report, while environmental health specialists regulate or test food, air, water, and wastewater to help protect the public against biological and chemical contaminants.
Mississippi’s public health officials have been focusing on key health challenges in the state such as a high incidence of stroke. As of January 2015, Mississippi became the first state in the country to have three statewide systems of care with the addition of its Stroke System of Care in hospitals. The state already had a care plan in place for heart attack patients, as well as a system of trauma care.
The collaboration of a number of stakeholders in public health helped bring this about including the MSDH, the Mississippi Healthcare Alliance, the American Heart Association, and the Mississippi Hospital Association. Mississippi is taking full advantage of the expertise of its local and state public health officials, healthcare providers, academic researchers, and non-governmental organizations to improve the state of its residents’ health.
Salaries for Public Health Professionals in Jackson
The Mississippi Department of Employment Security provides details on the salaries of a number of public health professions in Jackson for 2014. While these salaries can vary widely, professionals with advanced public health degrees such as a Master of Public Health are likely to earn higher salaries because of their advanced level of expertise.
An Analysis of Salaries Among Public Health Professionals in Mississippi
For comparison, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics provides a high level of detail on an array of public health professionals employed in Mississippi as of 2014:
