The Oregon Public Health Institute (OPHI) and the Public Health Institute (PHI) have begun a new strategic partnership poised to change the landscape of public health in Oregon. Our partnership ensures a strong and stable OPHI as we respond to COVID-19 and the public health challenges of the future.

PHI will now serve as OPHI’s fiscal sponsor and administrative home. OPHI will continue to set its own strategic direction and will stay focused on its mission of improving health and advancing equity in Oregon and beyond, with Oregon-based staff leading its work and collaborating with local partners. Our partnership ensures OPHI is positioned for a strong next chapter as an integral element of Oregon’s public health infrastructure, and leverages PHI’s experience and expertise to the benefit of Oregonians.

Our two organizations explored the opportunity to collaborate long before COVID-19, but the pandemic brings new urgency to this partnership and illustrates its vast potential. Our new Tracing Health program is an example of what we can accomplish together: Tracing Health provides COVID-19 case investigation and contact tracing services that are linguistically responsive, locally-based, and rapidly scaled. It blends OPHI’s community connections with PHI’s operational infrastructure and topical expertise to bring an equity focus and meet the needs of local health jurisdictions and the communities they serve. So far, we’ve launched projects in four counties in Oregon and Washington. Today, over 120 Tracing Health staff are making contact tracing calls and providing wraparound support in these communities, and the program is positioned to grow.

The affinity and alignment between our two organizations is demonstrated by our common history and shared values. For over twenty years, OPHI has been a nonprofit voice for public health in Oregon, providing leadership to create and implement solutions that improve health and equity. PHI was founded in 1964 in Oakland, CA and has dedicated itself to promoting health, equity, and quality of life for people across the nation and internationally. Today, PHI programs in 19 states and 27 countries, bolstered by a strong operational infrastructure, impact millions of people. Our combined experience, expertise, and relationships position us for transformational collaboration that will create systems change, respond to emerging public health needs, and attract new public health funding to Oregon. Together, through this partnership, we will ensure OPHI remains a public health leader for many years to come.