Celebrate Public Health Thank You Day!

By: Research!America

For 16 years, on the Monday before Thanksgiving, Research!America has brought together public health organizations and supporters to celebrate Public Health Thank You Day (#PHTYD). This November 22, add your voice to show gratitude to the public health professionals who work tirelessly to protect us from disease, injury, and other health threats.

Public health personnel work in many places, from community clinics to health departments to research labs. From the everyday to the extraordinary, these heroes ensure our drinking water is clean, our communities healthy, and our children safe. They also teach us how to reduce the risk of chronic disease. Today, as the most dangerous pandemic in a century continues, our gratitude cannot be any greater.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the skill and tested the fortitude of the public health workforce as they face new challenges, meet the needs of communities across the nation, and prepare for future public health crises. With ingenuity and commitment, they continue to combat the pandemic while still fighting ongoing health threats like opioid abuse. These heroes respond to emergencies, engage in disease prevention, promote vaccination, protect maternal health, and fight misinformation—among many other priorities.

Public Health Thank You Day gives us the opportunity to highlight topics that present opportunities and challenges to the public health workforce, including pandemic preparedness, misinformation, health equity, and more. But while this is a day framed by big issues, its focus is on individuals. Everyone knows someone who is part of the public health workforce. Each of us know specific people and groups we can reach out to online to say “thank you.”

Public Health Thank You Day has inspired involvement at every level, offering ways for everyone to show their support. Every year, governmental public officials such as the HHS Secretary, CDC and NIH directors, U.S. Surgeon General, members of Congress and governors have given thanks for those who serve as public health heroes. 

This year, bipartisan co-chairs of the Congressional Public Health Caucus—Rep. Rob Wittman (R-VA), Rep. Gene Green (D-TX), Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX), Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA)—are expected to share their support with a resolution expressing the sentiment of Congress that the public health workforce should be commended for their dedication and continued service on Public Health Thank You Day.

Join these members and so many others to offer your support! Here are the ways you can get involved:

  • Visit the PHTYD website at www.PublicHealthThankYouDay.org

  • Use social media! With our sample tweets or your own post, schedule a gratitude post for Monday, November 22, 2021 using the hashtag #PHTYD.

  • Download customizable resources and consider presenting a certificate, issuing a press release, or writing a letter to the editor.

Noah Hammes