A recent public health emergency situation that drew significant media attention was the H1N1 influenza virus pandemic outbreak that took place in April 2009 (Steelfisher et al, The Public’s Response to the 2009 H1N1 Influenza Pandemic, June 3, 2010). The H1N1 virus was a combination of genes of the influenza virus that had not been identified previously neither in animals nor in people (Centers for Disease Control, June 16, 2010). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) utilized laboratory workers and epidemiologists in order to determine that the H1N1 virus was linked to swine and transferred to humans. The CDC then activated its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in order to coordinate a response to this virus that threatened public health (Centers for Disease Control, June 16, 2010). The CDC also partnered with the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the White House in order to inform the public about this pandemic crisis and methods to prevent the spread of this virus. (Centers for Disease Control, June 16, 2010).

All occupational categories in the public health infrastructure contributed to the response to this pandemic crisis and its solution. These categories are public health administration, environmental and occupational health, public health nursing, epidemiology and disease control, public health education and information, other public health professionals such as laboratory workers, doctors, pharmacists, veterinarians, and social workers, and public health program occupations such as the emergency response teams, the public information specialists, the policy analysts, and the community outreach workers in the CDC, the HHS, the World Health Organization (WHO), state health departments, and local health departments (Turnock, page 150).
The competencies needed for public health workers are as follows: analytic/assessment skills, policy development/program planning skills, communication skills, cultural competency skills, community dimension of practice skills, public health sciences skills, financial planning and management skills, and leadership and systems thinking skills (Turnock,