Northwest Native American Research Center for Health: A Summary of Fellowship Trainees’ Success Over 15 Years of Funding

2020 ◽  
pp. 237337992097438
Author(s):  
Grazia Cunningham ◽  
Thomas M. Becker ◽  
Tanya Firemoon ◽  
Ashley Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Native American ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
American Indians ◽  
Financial Support ◽  
Research Capacity ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Tribal Communities ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
American Research

American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) continue to be severely underrepresented in biomedical research, particularly in principal investigator roles. Efforts to decrease health disparities have shifted to building research capacity and training highly skilled AI/AN health researchers who can conduct quality research within their tribal communities. Funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Indian Health Service, the Northwest Native American Research Centers for Health (NW NARCH) program has offered financial support and mentorship to 149 AI/AN biomedical and public health graduate students for the past 15 years. In 2018, trainees were surveyed to track their progress and career development. Survey results confirmed that the financial support and mentorship available via the NW NARCH program were instrumental to their professional advancement. Support to AI/AN biomedical graduate students should continue not only to diversify the public health workforce, but also to address risk factors and health conditions that disproportionately affect AI/AN people.

The New Public Health Workforce: Employment Outcomes of Public Health Graduate Students

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Krasna ◽  
Julie Kornfeld ◽  
Linda Cushman ◽  
Shuyue Ni ◽  
Pantelis Antoniou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Employment Outcomes ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
New Public Health ◽  
New Public

scholarly journals Racial/Ethnic Diversity in Academic Public Health: 20-Year Update

2019 ◽  
Vol 135 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melody S. Goodman ◽  
Christine M. Plepys ◽  
Jemar R. Bather ◽  
Rita M. Kelliher ◽  
Cheryl G. Healton
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Native American ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Role Models ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
Ethnic Composition ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Objective: This study is a follow-up to an examination of the racial/ethnic composition of public health students (1996) and faculty (1997) at schools of public health that was conducted 20 years ago. We examined data on the race/ethnicity of students, graduates, and faculty among Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH)–member institutions during 2016-2017 and how these data have changed in the past 20 years. Methods: We obtained data on the race/ethnicity of students (in 1996 and 2016), graduates (in 1996 and 2016), and faculty (in 1997 and 2017) at ASPPH-member institutions from the ASPPH Data Center. We tabulated frequencies, percentages, and 20-year percentage-point changes by race/ethnicity. We examined data for all current ASPPH-member institutions and for comparable subcohorts of 1996 and 1997 member institutions that are current ASPPH members. Results: In graduate student enrollment, the 20-year increase in each nonwhite racial/ethnic subgroup was ≤5 percentage points. Among tenured faculty, the 20-year increase was greatest among Asians (8 percentage points) but was <3 percentage points for black, Hispanic, and Native American faculty. Conclusions: The increasing racial/ethnic diversity among students, graduates, and faculty in schools and programs of public health contributes to parallel increases in racial/ethnic diversity in the public health workforce. Schools and programs of public health should recruit clusters of racial/ethnic minority students using holistic application review processes, provide enrolled students with racially/ethnically diverse role models and mentors, and dedicate staffing to ensure a student-centered approach. In addition, those who mentor racially/ethnically diverse students and junior faculty should be rewarded.

Accomplishments of a Training Support Program for American Indian and Alaska Native Health Researchers

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-94
Author(s):  
Tosha Zaback ◽  
Thomas Becker ◽  
Jessica Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
Native American ◽  
American Indian ◽  
Alaska Native ◽  
Financial Support ◽  
Health Program ◽  
Research Training ◽  
Academic Development ◽  
Support Program ◽  
Training Support ◽  
American Research

The Native American Research Centers for Health program was designed to foster research training and skill development for American Indian/Alaska Native trainees. Increasing the number of American Indian/Alaska Native researchers with advanced training in science is one strategy to help decrease health disparities in native peoples. Our NARCH program provided financial support and mentorship for professional and academic development of American Indian/Alaska Native award recipients. We report on an assessment of our NARCH training program that is directed toward increasing the number of qualified American Indian/Alaska Native researchers.

Certified in public health program: credentialing public health leaders

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison Foster
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Foreign Students ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Task Force ◽  
Public Health Education ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Content Type ◽  
National Board

Purpose – Unlike other health professions, there has historically been no licensing, registration, or certification of public health practitioners to demonstrate their qualification to the public and employers. The purpose of this paper is to outline the rationale for developing public health workforce certification, describes the certification process developed by the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE), and explains how it is affecting public health education and practice. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is a narrative review from records of NBPHE. Findings – The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health commissioned a formal study of health worker credentialing in 1989 and created a task force in 1999 to determine the need for public health credentialing. Based on input from public health leaders and stakeholders, the NBPHE was formed in 2005 to offer the Certified in Public Health (CPH) examination. The first CPH examination was administered in 2008. Uptake of the CPH was strong the first year (693 examinees), dropped by nearly half (369 examinees) in the second year, and then increased each year through 2015. Part of the increase may be due to eligibility revisions for taking the CPH examination. Eligibility for taking the CPH examination was revised in 2010 to include graduate students in public health and in 2015 to include candidates with a bachelor degree from any field and at least five years of work experience in public health. The NBPHE is piloting open professional eligibility for candidates with no formal education in public health and at least five year’s public health work experience. Schools and programs of public health accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) view the CPH examination as a useful tool in curriculum assessment and improvement and for maintaining CEPH accreditation. Several schools and programs of public health have begun requiring all graduate students to take the CPH examination. The CPH credential is also increasingly being used as a hiring factor among employers. Originality/value – NBPHE’s CPH credential is unique in the world. Foreign students graduating with American public health degrees have been taking the exam before returning to leadership roles in their own country. The CPH program described can serve as a model for other nations.

scholarly journals Public Health Workforce Burnout in the COVID-19 Response in the U.S.

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 4369
Author(s):  
Kahler W. Stone ◽  
Kristina W. Kintziger ◽  
Meredith A. Jagger ◽  
Jennifer A. Horney
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Work Experience ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The U.S

While the health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on frontline health care workers have been well described, the effects of the COVID-19 response on the U.S. public health workforce, which has been impacted by the prolonged public health response to the pandemic, has not been adequately characterized. A cross-sectional survey of public health professionals was conducted to assess mental and physical health, risk and protective factors for burnout, and short- and long-term career decisions during the pandemic response. The survey was completed online using the Qualtrics survey platform. Descriptive statistics and prevalence ratios (95% confidence intervals) were calculated. Among responses received from 23 August and 11 September 2020, 66.2% of public health workers reported burnout. Those with more work experience (1–4 vs. <1 years: prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.90, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.08−3.36; 5–9 vs. <1 years: PR = 1.89, CI = 1.07−3.34) or working in academic settings (vs. practice: PR = 1.31, CI = 1.08–1.58) were most likely to report burnout. As of September 2020, 23.6% fewer respondents planned to remain in the U.S. public health workforce for three or more years compared to their retrospectively reported January 2020 plans. A large-scale public health emergency response places unsustainable burdens on an already underfunded and understaffed public health workforce. Pandemic-related burnout threatens the U.S. public health workforce’s future when many challenges related to the ongoing COVID-19 response remain unaddressed.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Education for Public Health: A Practical Foundation for Solidarity

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Perkiö ◽  
R Harrison ◽  
M Grivna ◽  
D Tao ◽  
C Evashwich
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Education ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Education ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Rigorous Evaluation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Health Professionals

Abstract Education is a key to creating solidary among the professionals who advance public health’s interdisciplinary mission. Our assumption is that if all those who work in public health shared core knowledge and the skills for interdisciplinary interaction, collaboration across disciplines, venues, and countries would be facilitated. Evaluation of education is an essential element of pedagogy to ensure quality and consistency across boundaries, as articulated by the UNESCO education standards. Our study examined the evaluation studies done by programs that educate public health professionals. We searched the peer reviewed literature published in English between 2000-2017 pertaining to the education of the public health workforce at a degree-granting level. The 2442 articles found covered ten health professions disciplines and had lead authors representing all continents. Only 86 articles focused on evaluation. The majority of the papers examined either a single course, a discipline-specific curriculum or a teaching method. No consistent methodologies could be discerned. Methods ranged from sophisticated regression analyses and trends tracked over time to descriptions of focus groups and interviews of small samples. We found that evaluations were primarily discipline-specific, lacked rigorous methodology in many instances, and that relatively few examined competencies or career expectations. The public health workforce enjoys a diversity of disciplines but must be able to come together to share diverse knowledge and skills. Evaluation is critical to achieving a workforce that is well trained in the competencies pertinent to collaboration. This study informs the pedagogical challenges that must be confronted going forward, starting with a commitment to shared core competencies and to consistent and rigorous evaluation of the education related to training public health professionals. Key messages Rigorous evaluation is not sufficiently used to enhance the quality of public health education. More frequent use of rigorous evaluation in public health education would enhance the quality of public health workforce, and enable cross-disciplinary and international collaboration for solidarity.

A Pipeline to Increase Public Health Diversity: Describing the Academic Enrichment Components of the Summer Public Health Scholars Program

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 44S-50S ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle M. Joyner ◽  
Eman Faris ◽  
Diana Hernández ◽  
Joyce Moon Howard ◽  
Robert E. Fullilove ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Underrepresented Students ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Columbia University ◽  
Biomedical Sciences ◽  
Health Training ◽  
Public Health Training ◽  
Academic Enrichment

A public health workforce that reflects the increasing diversity of the U.S. population is critical for health promotion and to eliminate persistent health disparities. Academic institutions must provide appropriate education and training to increase diversity in public health professions to improve efforts to provide culturally competent care and programs in the most vulnerable communities. Reaching into the existing talent pool of diverse candidates at the undergraduate level is a promising avenue for building a pipeline to advanced training and professional careers in the field of public health. The Summer Public Health Scholars Program (SPHSP) at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) is a 10-week summer internship program with a mission to increase knowledge and interest in public health and biomedical sciences. Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Undergraduate Public Health Summer Programs, sponsored by the CDC’s Office of Minority Health and Health Equity, SPHSP aims to pipeline underrepresented students into public health graduate programs and careers by providing mentorship, academic enrichment, professional development, and field-based placements. The SPHSP is uniquely positioned to offer scholars a program that exposes them to core public health training components through the joint effort of all four CUIMC schools: public health, dentistry, nursing, and medicine. Here, we describe the program’s academic enrichment components, which provide advanced and multifaceted public health training opportunities. We discuss the impacts of the program on student outcomes and lessons learned in developing and refining the program model.

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