Why You Should Attend the CSTE Annual Conference 

The CSTE 2027 Annal Conference is a valuable opportunity for public health professionals to enhance their expertise, access critical training, and engage in meaningful discussions that impact their daily work. More than 2,500 public health epidemiologists from across the country will gather to share their knowledge in surveillance and epidemiology, learn from leading experts in the field of public health, and discuss new insights and strategies that address critical public health priorities, including outbreaks, non-communicable diseases, data modernization, workforce issues, and other applied epidemiology needs.  

Attending the CSTE 2027 Annual Conference is beneficial on several levels: for you individually in your day-to-day work, for your organization, and for the overall public health of citizens in your jurisdiction and throughout the country. The benefits gained from networking, training, and policy discussions translate into tangible improvements in public health practice, making attendance a sound investment for public health professionals and organizations.  

See below for more on these benefits. You can also download a Sample Justification Letter to provide your leadership with more information about why you should attend the CSTE 2027 Annual Conference.  

Key Benefits 

Attendees 

• Sessions focused on practical skills relevant to public health data, outbreak investigation, and other critical topics provide training that can directly impact the effectiveness of your day-to-day epidemiological and surveillance work.  

• Networking opportunities offer the chance to share your best practices and strategies with peers and learn about successful efforts in other jurisdictions.  

Public Health Departments 

• CSTE hosts the only annual public health conference offering substantive, focused information and training specific to the needs of applied epis working in state, Tribal, local, and territorial (STLT) public health departments. This maximizes learning opportunities over just a few days and can help fill possible training and capacity gaps for STLT jurisdictions.  

• Establishing and strengthening connections with other epidemiologists promotes collaborations and partnerships that increase effectiveness. 

• Access to operational documents, tools, and resources that aid in outbreak investigations and emergency preparedness allows epis to focus on response efforts. Utilizing these resources also helps jurisdictions better prevent, detect, and respond to outbreaks and hazardous exposures.  

Public Health Nationwide 

• Increased public health workforce knowledge and competency translates into enhanced disease surveillance and efficiency, ultimately improving public health outcomes overall.  

• Building relationships and working together across STLTs creates a more connected, resilient, and responsive public health system that protects all communities and helps them thrive.  

• Discussions regarding national surveillance policies help establish standardized surveillance case definitions, ensuring data consistency across jurisdictions, more effective public health interventions, and improved resource allocation.  

• Real-time insights into current topics and growing trends, including emergent epidemiolocal challenges and response strategies, ensure STLTs employ programs that are evidence-based and aligned with the latest scientific advancements.