From Data to Impact: My Internship Journey at CDPH

?? How can data science drive meaningful public health decisions? This was the question that guided my journey as an Intern at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) in Fall 2024. Over three months, I had the incredible opportunity to work on projects that transformed data into actionable insights, improving decision-making and automation within the department.

?? Why I Applied to CDPH

My motivation to apply for this role came from my research project on "Analyzing prescription drug expenditures" to make policy recommendations. That project sparked my curiosity—how do real-world policies take shape, and what impact do they create in public health?

I wanted to go beyond theoretical analysis and understand how policies are implemented and the role that data analytics plays in shaping them. When I came across the CDPH internship, it felt like the perfect opportunity.

?? The Challenge: Handling Complex Public Health Data

At CDPH, I worked in the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch, focusing on Lead(pb) exposure data, database structuring, and workflow automation. The biggest challenge? Processing unstructured lab reports and transforming them into structured insights that could support policymakers and public health initiatives.

??? My Key Contributions

? Leading Automation Efforts with Power Apps AI Builder One of the major bottlenecks in the workflow was manual data extraction from PDFs, which was time-intensive and prone to errors. To solve this, I:

• Designed an automation workflow using Power Apps AI Builder & Power Automate to extract data efficiently.
• Streamlined manual processes, reducing processing time by 98%.
• Created a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for implementation, ensuring future scalability.

This project laid the foundation for a crucial automation solution that will significantly improve efficiency at CDPH.

? Shaping a SQL-Based Public Health Database Working with large-scale unstructured lab data, I:

• Attended cross-functional meetings to define database structure and data needs.
• Researched public & private hosting platforms and analyzed similar databases to ensure best practices.
• Helped establish a robust SQL-based foundation, enabling more structured data storage and analytics.

? Data Visualization & Business Intelligence (Power BI)

I collaborated with teams to develop and refine Power BI dashboards, helping state officials:

• Gain deeper insights into lead exposure trends across California.
• Conducted Knowledge Transfer & Presentations with other teams, enabling them to build their dashboards.

? Stakeholder Research & Policy Analysis Beyond technical contributions, I conducted extensive research on:

• State & federal agencies involved in lead-related data collection.
• Laws and regulations governing non-housing sources of lead exposure (e.g., consumer products, workplaces, hobbies).

?? My Interview Experience at CDPH

I remember walking into my interview feeling both nervous and excited. Public health was a new space for me, but as I started sharing my projects and automation ideas—inspired by what I had explored on the website—I felt an immediate sense of alignment

If you’re considering applying for a CDPH Internship, here’s what my experience looked like:

Application Process

?? Applied in May for the Fall Cohort – CDPH hires paid interns every Fall and Spring, and international students are eligible. More details: CDPH Internship Program.

?? First-round interview in June – A behavioral interview to understand my background, interests, and experience.

?? Second-round interview in July – My resume was matched with a department, and this round was more technical. They wanted to see how I could contribute to their initiatives, and we explored ideas for automation & SQL databases.

?? CDPH receives a huge number of applications every year, and while I’m not sure if applying within the first few days makes a difference, I did – and it worked! If you’re interested, I’d highly recommend applying as early as possible. Additionally, I suggest submitting the interest form available on the CDPH website to get notified as soon as positions open up, ensuring you don’t miss the opportunity.

?? My Most Memorable Experience

One of my most memorable moments was when I saw my automation workflow actually work in real-time. Watching a process that used to take hours get done in minutes was such a rewarding feeling!

? The Power of Data in Public Health

The ability to use data to help the community prevent lead poisoning in children is such a powerful cause. Throughout my internship, I kept reminding myself of the real-world impact behind the numbers, and that made every analysis more meaningful. I may have made a small contribution, but knowing that my work could impact the community in some way gave me immense satisfaction.

?? Your Thoughts?

Have you worked on data-driven public health projects? I’d love to hear about your experiences! Drop a comment or connect with me. ??

#DataScience #PublicHealth #Internship #Automation #Analytics #SQL #PowerBI #Python