Public Health Surveillance and Informatics Program Office (proposed) (PHSIPO)*

Division of Behavioral Surveillance (DBS)

Monitoring Behavioral and Mental Health to Improve Public Health

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s Division of Behavioral Surveillance (DBS) designs and manages state and local surveillance activities that provide integrated disease, risk behavior, and health information to state and local public health authorities and CDC programs. DBS plans, coordinates, and implements activities related to the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)—the nation’s premier system of telephone health surveys that collects state and local data on the health-related behaviors and chronic conditions of Americans. DBS also conducts other specialized surveys to support CDC programs and obtain data on important emerging health issues such as influenza and mental health.

Federal, state, and local governments use the information collected by DBS surveys to develop and evaluate programs, policies, and legislation to improve public health and track progress toward achieving public health goals.

DBS works collaboratively with state and territorial health departments to

• provide technical assistance in BRFSS survey operations to ensure standardized, high-quality data;
• develop metropolitan statistical area (MSA) estimates, which allow for health tracking on the MSA level;
• assess state epidemiologists’ mental health and disaster response surveillance priorities and needs;
• support and enhance analyses of data from BRFSS and specialized surveys;
• disseminate data widely by promoting the broad use and application of DBS databases; and
• support development of standardized and validated state and local specialized surveys.

DBS also works collaboratively with many CDC programs and other federal agencies, such as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to

• develop special reports, such as the annual Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report Mental Health Surveillance Summary;
• integrate surveillance across federal and state agencies;
• support and enhance use of DBS surveillance databases; and
• develop and implement standardized and validated state and local specialized surveys for emerging public health issues, such as mental health and disaster response, and for focused initiatives, such as the Communities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) project, a locally driven American Recovery and Reinvestment Act initiative that assists the public health response to obesity and tobacco use in 50 CPPW communities.