We ask.
Health begins in the places we live, learn, work, and connect. So that’s where we start: on front porches, in church fellowship halls, at kitchen tables and courthouse meetings, asking what people need before anyone decides what to build.
MISSISSIPPI PUBLIC HEALTH INSTITUTE
Our mission is health.
We ask. We listen. We learn. We get to work.
See our programsRooted in Mississippi. Connected by purpose.
OUR APPROACH
Here’s how
we work.
Our work starts with people.
And moves forward, together.
We listen.
Then we take the answer seriously, even when it isn’t what we expected. We plan programs, services and activities together with the people who will live with them. The people closest to a problem usually understand it best.
We learn.
We put what we hear next to what the numbers show. Where the numbers don’t exist, we go find them. A problem nobody counts is a problem nobody fixes.
We get to work.
Side by side with local partners, we develop and carry out the work: training people, putting lifesaving tools where they’re needed, and opening doors to care where doors had closed. From the first day, we share every part of it, so local hands know how it’s done.
We partner.
Our goal is for local organizations to own the work and keep it going. When they’re ready, we step back, but not away. MSPHI has been a partner in Mississippi since 2011, and we measure our success by the work that keeps going without us.
Partnerships that create collective impact.
When people work together, the impact is greater and the results last. MSPHI is an independent nonprofit that builds partnerships so state agencies, communities, and local organizations can set and reach shared goals. Together, we plan, build, and carry out programs as a team. Then we help local partners take ownership, so the work is sustainable, and we remain a partner as they lead.
OUR WORK IN NUMBERS
- 82
- All Mississippi counties reached with overdose response training and naloxone
- 5,400+
- First responders and law enforcement officers trained
- 14,400
- Participants reached through the MSPHI Health Learning Network
- 31
- Rural hospitals operating without obstetric services, identified and engaged
Figures as most recently reported — overdose response through May 2025; Health Learning Network cumulative course registrations, which count repeat participants and include professionals outside Mississippi; Maternal Health Innovation project year 1.
OUR PROGRAMS
Many approaches.
One healthier future.
01
Community health
We run community programs on HIV care, tobacco, heart health and youth resilience, side by side with local partners.
See our community health programs02
Substance use & overdose response
We train first responders, put naloxone where it’s needed, and run prevention and recovery programs with communities and churches.
See our substance use & overdose programs03
Maternal & infant health
We run support groups for new mothers, work with hospitals to improve care at birth, and bring maternal health data into one place.
See our maternal & infant health programs04
Workforce & professional development
We train the people who deliver health services across Mississippi and give them continuing education credit.
See our workforce & professional development programsEVENTS & CONFERENCES
Better health
happens together.
Shared learning. Meaningful conversations. New connections. Come together with people moving public health forward.
Events & conferencesSTAY CONNECTEDMore opportunities
More opportunities
to connect are ahead.
Explore our calendar for upcoming gatherings, or visit the Mississippi Behavioral Health Learning Network for professional training.
Explore professional learning
THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE PURPOSE
Local knowledge.
Shared commitment.
Our team brings experience in public health, education, research, and community engagement to the work we do every day.
Meet our staff