Emily Santich

Policy Analyst Emily Santich is deeply involved in CHI's assessment work, incorporating qualitative and quantitative analysis, facilitation, and community and stakeholder engagement. Emily has led maternal mental and behavioral health assessments for Centura Health and SCL Health (now Intermountain Healthcare) and community health needs assessments for San Luis Valley Health and for several Colorado communities served by Centura Health hospitals. She also works with the Metro Denver Partnership for Health's Immunization Ambassador Program and is on CHI's Acclimate Colorado team.

Prior to CHI, Emily joined Colorado’s statewide COVID-19 response effort as a Laboratory Testing Coordinator Team Lead at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to support testing and immunization events. Emily also interned at the Health Resources and Services Administration Office of Regional Operations (ORO) in Boston. At ORO she conducted an environmental scan, policy analysis, and stakeholder analysis of school-based health centers in Massachusetts, which informed policymaking to advance health and educational equity among socially and economically disadvantaged children.

Emily earned a master’s degree in public health from the Boston University School of Public Health, where she worked as a prevention educator leading bystander intervention training for undergraduate students. Through a graduate assistantship in partnership with the City of Boston, she also managed a community-based fitness center that provides health and wellness programming to a diverse, predominantly low-income community.

In her spare time, Emily enjoys hiking, biking, and embracing her inner grandmother (petting her cat, drinking tea, and crocheting).

Skills: Needs assessment; stakeholder engagement; facilitation; program design, implementation, and evaluation

Sample Projects:

• The Anti-Hunger Community Toolkit

• Evaluating the COVID-19 Primary Care Vaccination Program

• Author of Strengthening Relationships Between Health and Community Organizations to Support Health Equity

Focus Areas:

• Early childhood
• Maternal mental health
• Climate and health
• Public and community health

I do this work because: Everyone should have, though not everyone has been afforded, the opportunity to live a happy, healthy life. CHI’s work and research informs policy that drives social and system-wide change to advance health equity. 

Contact Emily