Learning Through Practice: The Design and Implementation of an Advanced Integrative Practicum for DrPH Students

2020 ◽  
pp. 237337992093189
Author(s):  
Bree L. Hemingway ◽  
Jamie Q. Felicitas-Perkins ◽  
C. Anderson Johnson ◽  
Michael Osur ◽  
Darleen V. Peterson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Health System ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Professional Programs ◽  
Practice Experience ◽  
High Level ◽  
External Entity

Students enrolled in Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) programs accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health complete an applied practice experience resulting in an advanced project. This requirement can vary by program, but it commonly occurs as a singular experience after students have begun coursework. In 2016, we assessed the practicum component for the Doctor of Public Health degree at Claremont Graduate University. We sought feedback from employers and reviewed other professional programs with required practice experiences. Data indicated that successful experiences integrated didactic coursework with practice, suggesting the design of an embedded format versus a stand-alone requirement. The Advanced Integrative Practicum (AIP) was launched in Fall 2017 through a partnership between Claremont Graduate University School of Community and Global Health and Riverside University Health System. The practicum series began with an introduction to the health system through rotations led by Riverside University Health System (AIP-A), continued with students engaging with experts to propose solutions to public health issues (AIP-B), and concluded with a high-level practice-based project (AIP-C) where students, under supervision of a mentor at an external entity, implement projects. Qualitative data obtained through final written syntheses indicated that a majority of students feel the experience was integral to their DrPH training. Steps were taken to address threats to sustainability and a program component that seemed not sufficiently engaging. Although the practicum was not continued in its piloted form, best practices were realized as were lessons learned, ultimately leading to broader modifications in the DrPH program curriculum.

scholarly journals Vaccination knowledge, attitudes and practices in patients with HIV: a cross-sectional survey

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Rousset ◽  
G Voglino ◽  
E Boietti ◽  
A Corradi ◽  
M R Gualano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Health System ◽  
Vaccination Coverage ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Hiv Patients ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Contagion Risk ◽  
High Level

Abstract Background Infectious diseases are more common and severe in patients with HIV, which show different response to vaccines and a diminished protection. It is therefore very important to assess knowledge and attitudes towards vaccination in people with HIV, since precise vaccination coverage and vaccine hesitancy are not well established in this subgroup of patients. Methods A sample of 119 patients with HIV completed a cross-sectional survey. Patients were recruited during their routine medical examination at the infectious diseases clinic in Turin. The survey explored these main areas: demographics and history of HIV infection, vaccination history, attitudes towards vaccination, confidence in the public health system, contagion risk and disease seriousness perception. In this preliminary phase descriptive analysis were conducted. Results Preliminary data show that mean age of the participants was 49.51 years, 80% were males. The median of HIV infection duration was 10 years, while the median of the lymphocyte count was 762.50 cells/mm3. The disease with the highest vaccination coverage was tetanus (88.7%), considered a serious or very serious disease by 85.6% of the participants, despite low or very low contagion risk perception (84.1%). The disease with the lowest vaccination coverage was Herpes Zoster (7.3%), despite high or very high seriousness perception (70%). Furthermore, 99.1% of the participants showed high or very high confidence toward public health system professionals, and the majority of them (59.5%) stated that vaccines are more useful for the community than for the single person. Conclusions Vaccination coverage is still not fully satisfactory regarding diseases considered infrequent or mild. Considering the high level of confidence toward the public health system that has emerged, it is necessary to implement informative and operative strategies about vaccination for European HIV patients, which are particularly at risk regarding infectious diseases. Key messages Vaccination coverage and risk perception in HIV patients is not satisfactory for many diseases and an effort to implement informative strategies in Europe is needed. The role of vaccination in preventing infectious diseases in HIV patients should be recognized and strengthened by relying on the high level of confidence toward European public health systems.

scholarly journals Community pharmacy as a setting for public health nutrition action: Australian nutritionists’ perspectives

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 1864-1872 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith H Maher ◽  
John Lowe ◽  
Roger Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Community Pharmacy ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Infant Nutrition ◽  
Public Health Nutrition ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Nutrient Supplementation ◽  
Practice Experience ◽  
In Pregnancy

AbstractObjectiveTo explore public health nutritionists’ perceptions of nutrition and its place in community pharmacy (CP) presently and into the future; and to explore perceived opportunities, feasibility and scope of public health nutrition (PHN) interventions in CP, with a focus on maternal and infant nutrition.DesignQualitative data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and drew on hermeneutics as the theoretical framework for analysis and interpretation.SettingQueensland, Australia.SubjectsPublic health nutritionists, identified through purposive, criterion sampling, were chosen due to (i) their role as potential stakeholders, (ii) their knowledge and emphasis on nutrition and (iii) their practice experience.ResultsOpportunities for PHN action focused primarily on actions relating to early nutrient supplementation in pregnancy and breast-feeding protection and promotion. Opportunities in CP were constrained by practitioners’ perception of (i) conflict between health care and commercial interests in CP, (ii) problematic practices in CP and (iii) values and motivations of practitioners and other stakeholders in the CP sector. Strategies were suggested to improve practices and enhance the setting from a PHN perspective. Participants suggested both collaborative and regulatory approaches to achieve settings-based changes, identifying the need for these to coexist for effective outcomes.ConclusionsPublic health nutritionists suggest that opportunities for PHN action are constrained by perceived conflicted interests and that consumers need to be adequately protected from the influence of commercial interests. PHN action in this setting needs adequate reflection on evidence as well as ethics ensuring that practices are ‘for the good’ of mothers and infants.

scholarly journals The Covid-19 Epidemic, China Containment Contexts, and Risk Mitigation, Public Health Lessons Learned, is it Feasible for Europe & Us

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Hamid Yahya Hussain ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health System ◽  
Risk Mitigation ◽  
Mortality Rates ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
High Morbidity ◽  
Wuhan City ◽  
City Population ◽  
Short Time ◽  
Complete Collapse

Despite the high morbidity and mortality rates of COVID-19 infection china witnessed during the first two months of 2020, and compared to the short time of the epidemic among Wuhan city population in Hubei territory, the response of the health system to the disaster in this country was significantly effective, despite what seemed clear in the early days that the virus was fierce to the point of conquering the capabilities of the country, and it is so explosive, we all had the feeling that China was on the verge of complete collapse within few weeks.

COVID-19 in Ebola’s Wake

2021 ◽  
Vol 120 (826) ◽  
pp. 167-171
Author(s):  
Adia Benton
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health System ◽  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Previous Experience ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Global Crisis ◽  
The Government ◽  
Western Media

Like other African nations, Sierra Leone seemed to avoid the worst pandemic scenarios. Its previous experience with Ebola may have led to improved preparedness in the health system. But the government has once again reverted to a militarized response, and elites returning from international travel may pose a risk of spreading the coronavirus. The author also reflects on the challenges of tracking the situation from afar, in the midst of a global crisis, and critically assesses Western media coverage of African public health issues.

scholarly journals Integration of an Academic Medical Center and a Large Health System: Implications for Pharmacy

2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 170-174
Author(s):  
Brian L. Erstad ◽  
Tina Aramaki ◽  
Kurt Weibel
Keyword(s):  
Health System ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Integration Method ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Academic Medical Center ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Pharmacy Services ◽  
Academic Medical ◽  
High Level

Objective: To provide lessons learned for colleges of pharmacy and large health systems that are contemplating or in the process of undergoing integration. Method: This report describes the merger of an academic medical center and large health system with a focus on the implications of the merger for pharmacy from the perspectives of both a college of pharmacy and a health system’s pharmacy services. Results: Overarching pharmacy issues to consider include having an administrator from the college of pharmacy directly involved in the merger negotiation discussions, having at least one high-level administrator from the college of pharmacy and one high-level pharmacy administrator from the health system involved in ongoing discussions about implications of the merger and changes that are likely to affect teaching, research, and clinical service activities, having focused discussions between college and health system pharmacy administrators on the implications of the merger on experiential and research-related activities, and anticipating concerns by clinical faculty members affected by the merger. Conclusion: The integration of a college of pharmacy and a large health system during the acquisition of an academic medical center can be challenging for both organizations, but appropriate pre- and post-merger discussions between college and health system pharmacy administrators that include a strategic planning component can assuage concerns and problems that are likely to arise, increasing the likelihood of a mutually beneficial collaboration.

scholarly journals Does intense electoral competition increase the government health expenditure in EAs?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeong Woo Lee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Expenditure ◽  
Electoral Competition ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Public Health Expenditure ◽  
The Public ◽  
Government Health ◽  
The Government ◽  
Government Health Expenditure ◽  
High Level

<p></p><p>Does intense electoral competition in electoral autocracies (EAs) increase the government health expenditure? Previous studies on EAs and public health expenditure focus on the presence of multiparty elections in EAs as a significant determinant on the expenditure. Most of elections in EAs often are unfair because those are for the victory of dictators; hence. multiparty elections <i>per se</i> do not capture well-known impact of elections, such as the electoral competition increasing health expenditure. Some EAs pay health expenditure less than others even though electoral competition is high. This paper analyzes the effect of electoral competition on the government health expenditure with the balanced panel data of 20 EAs from 2001 to 2017. There are two rival arguments on how electoral competition affect the expenditure according to previous studies; (a) a high level of electoral competition indicates a difficulty of dictatorial winning in elections. Autocrats, hence, gather various demands including health issues from voters, and can increase the government health expenditure; (b) Autocrats pursue the victory in elections. Pork and personal benefits to voters rather than programmed policies are helpful for the victory. Therefore, there is no incentive for autocrats to provide government health expenditure to voters when the level of electoral competition is high. Empirical findings demonstrate that electoral competition in EAs lead the decrease of government health expenditure. This paper concludes that electoral competition does not increase the public health expenditure; the higher level of competition in autocracies does not mean that voters can exert their power to autocrats to realize policies.</p><br><p></p>

Understanding the concept of compassion from the perspectives of nurses

2021 ◽  
pp. 096973302098340
Author(s):  
Ángela María Ortega-Galán ◽  
Esteban Pérez-García ◽  
Gonzalo Brito-Pons ◽  
Juan Diego Ramos-Pichardo ◽  
María Inés Carmona-Rega ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health System ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
Educational Interventions ◽  
Theory Model ◽  
Cultural Elements ◽  
Excellent Care ◽  
High Level ◽  
Nursing Professionals

Background: The high level of satisfaction of users of a health service is largely due to the fact that they receive excellent care from healthcare professionals. Compassionate care is an essential component of excellent care. But what do nurses understand compassion to be? Research objectives: To analyse the concept of compassion from the perspective of nurses in the Andalusian Public Health System, Spain. Research design: This is a qualitative study following the grounded theory model. Four focus groups and 25 in-depth interviews were conducted. Participants and research context: A total of 68 nursing professionals working in the Andalusian Public Health System (Spain) participated. Theoretical sampling was used, with participants being recruited using the snowball technique. Ethical considerations: This research was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Centro-Almería Health District (CEICA 27/9/17). Findings: From the analysis of the data, four themes emerged that helped to understand the concept of compassion according to nurses: ‘Negative perception of the term compassion’, ‘Compassion and empathy as synonyms’, ‘Beyond empathy’, and ‘Effects of having a compassionate attitude’. Discussion: Nurses perceive the concept of compassion differently to each other and even contradictorily. This concept is imbued with cultural elements, which adds confusion to understanding it, and is even perceived as something negative similar to pity. Conclusion: Nurses confuse the concepts of empathy and compassion as if they were synonymous. Before considering training in compassion for healthcare professionals, it is essential to clarify the concept of compassion through educational interventions.

scholarly journals Contact Tracing and the COVID-19 Response in Africa: Best Practices, Key Challenges, and Lessons Learned from Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, and Uganda

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean B. Nachega ◽  
Rhoda Atteh ◽  
Chikwe Ihekweazu ◽  
Nadia A. Sam-Agudu ◽  
Prisca Adejumo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Community Education ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Face Mask ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Political Commitment ◽  
African Countries

Most African countries have recorded relatively lower COVID-19 burdens than Western countries. This has been attributed to early and strong political commitment and robust implementation of public health measures, such as nationwide lockdowns, travel restrictions, face mask wearing, testing, contact tracing, and isolation, along with community education and engagement. Other factors include the younger population age strata and hypothesized but yet-to-be confirmed partially protective cross-immunity from parasitic diseases and/or other circulating coronaviruses. However, the true burden may also be underestimated due to operational and resource issues for COVID-19 case identification and reporting. In this perspective article, we discuss selected best practices and challenges with COVID-19 contact tracing in Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, and Uganda. Best practices from these country case studies include sustained, multi-platform public communications; leveraging of technology innovations; applied public health expertise; deployment of community health workers; and robust community engagement. Challenges include an overwhelming workload of contact tracing and case detection for healthcare workers, misinformation and stigma, and poorly sustained adherence to isolation and quarantine. Important lessons learned include the need for decentralization of contact tracing to the lowest geographic levels of surveillance, rigorous use of data and technology to improve decision-making, and sustainment of both community sensitization and political commitment. Further research is needed to understand the role and importance of contact tracing in controlling community transmission dynamics in African countries, including among children. Also, implementation science will be critically needed to evaluate innovative, accessible, and cost-effective digital solutions to accommodate the contact tracing workload.

COVID-19 situation in Honduras: lessons learned

2020 ◽  
Vol 128 (S2) ◽  
pp. S242-S250
Author(s):  
Itzel Fuentes ◽  
Karla Henriquez ◽  
Fausto Muñoz ◽  
Elsa Palou ◽  
Tito Alvarado ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health System ◽  
Surveillance System ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
Emerging Diseases ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Epidemiological Surveillance ◽  
The Public

Introduction: Several emerging and re-emerging diseases in the last decade have shown the global weakness to detect and act in a timely manner in situations that threaten the health of the planet. Latin America has been vulnerable to outbreaks as a result of increased poverty, social inequity and the poor response capacity of the public health system. Objective: Describe the situation of COVID-19 in Honduras and the challenges it presents. Methodology: Analysis of the epidemiology and control strategies applied in the country to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2, in the context of the social and economic reality until September 18, 2020. Results: Honduras ranks fifth in Central America in the number of tests performed; the cumulative incidence rate of cases is 7 105 per million inhabitants. The country has an accelerated growth in the percentage of positivity with intense community transmission. Some 63.4 % of cases are concentrated in the group 20-49 years old (43 624 cases); 15.2 % in adults 60+ (10 440 cases) and 7.5 % in children under 20 (5 133 cases). With a disjointed health system and a chronic and recurrent shortage of physical and human resources, the National Risk Management System (SINAGER), which includes the Ministry of Health (SESAL), implemented various strategies to reduce the spread of the virus. Some control measures were border closures, physical distancing and the use of masks were made mandatory by legislative decree. The serious impact on the weak national economy forced an intelligent opening coinciding with the rise of cases. Conclusions: Current data show that the age group most affected is adults between 20 and 49 years old. The country’s socioeconomic situation has been aggravated by the pandemic; the continuous rise in the number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths has collapsed the public health system leaving the majority of Hondurans in continuous vulnerability. Primary care clinics and mobile medical brigades have been implemented as a new way to contain the spread and impact of transmission. Several European countries and cities in the Americas have had to reverse the process of economic reopening when faced with successive waves of outbreaks. Honduras has demonstrated limited capacity to deal with catastrophic situations. The national epidemiological surveillance system and access to timely and quality diagnostic tests remain weak and fragmented. There is an urgent need to improve the health and surveillance system to guide strategic evidence-based decision making and to prevent future pandemics.

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