Introduction Sustainable public health practice requires the input of information that is up-to-date, accurate, and reflecting originality from diverse sources. Since the emergence of computers and information technologies, healthcare practitioners and institutions have been using them for record-keeping, database management, research, and surveillance. Through a knowledgeable and systematic approach to public health practice and the adoption of information technologies, an effective public health information system can be developed. Public health informatics (PHI) is ‘’the organized application of information and computer science and technology to public health practice, research, and learning to enhance and facilitate public health activities’’ (Yasnoff, et al, 2000). PHI is one of the major branches of Biomedical Informatics. Biomedical Informatics refers to “the scientific field that deals with biomedical information, data, and knowledge including their storage, retrieval, and maximum use for problem-solving and decision-making” (Shortliffe & Cimino, P.24). Hence, PHI involves the collection, storage, and analysis of public health data and its application in health surveillance and epidemiology. It is implemented at the federal, state, and local levels in public health agencies. Its application may include collection and storage of birth, bio, and death records, reports on communicable diseases; laboratories test result, infectious disease surveillance information, statistics, and trends, child immunization and screening information, and analysis of biological threats and hospital preparedness for emergencies. Utilizing PHI in the healthcare field provides unlimited capacity to model healthier societies that reap the benefit of technological integrations in healthcare provision systems. With increased public threats such as bioterrorism and influenza pandemics, the need for better infrastructure for distributing information on the good practices for healthier communities will always increase, calling for advances in PHI systems (Stout & Washko, 2002). In essence, the need for PHI is mainly caused by rapid advancement in information technology, increased strain on the public health system, and changes in health care delivery (Yasnoff, et al, 2000, P.68). Therefore, future PHI programs will be based on the improvement of the earlier public health practices in terms of their quality, effectiveness, and efficiency. PHI is oriented to the achievement of specific tasks such as “conceptualization, design, development, deployment, refinement, maintenance and evaluation of communication, surveillance, and information systems relevant to public health” (Yasnoff, et al, 2000, P.68). Thus, it involves the input of knowledge from various disciplines that form part of public health. Distinguishing feature of public health informatics from other health informatics includes, that it focuses on the health of the community rather than that of the individual patient, it focuses on prevention rather than diagnosis and treatment and it exists in a governmental context (Shortliffe & Cimino, P.538). Studies involving PHI mainly focus on the prevention of disease and injury