scholarly journals Addressing the Under-Representation of African American Public Health Researchers: The Flint Youth Public Health Academy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kent Key
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
African American ◽  
Health Disparities ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Educational Trajectories ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Institutional Review ◽  
Walden University

In order to meet the health needs of a culturally diverse population, the United States public health workforce must become ethnically diversified to provide culturally competent care. The underrepresentation of minority, specifically African American public health professionals may be a contributing factor to the high rates of preventable health disparities in the African American community. Studies have shown that racial/ethnic communities bear the highest disparities across multiple health outcomes. African Americans, when compared with European Americans, suffer the greatest rates of health disparities, thus providing the justification to increase minority public health professionals. In addition, studies suggest that minorities are more likely to seek medical and health services from individuals of the same ethnicity. This will assist in decreasing language and comprehension barriers and increase the cultural competence of the health providers who serve populations from their ethnic/cultural origin. This chapter will highlight a 2014 study designed to explore and identify motivators for African Americans to choose public health as a career. African American public health professionals and graduate students were engaged to discuss their career and educational trajectories and motivators for career choice. Using qualitative research methods, this study was guided by the following research question: what are the motivating factors to engage African Americans into careers in public health? The study was approved by the Walden University Institutional Review Board and was conducted in 2014. The results of this study have served as the blueprint for the creation of the Flint Public Health Youth Academy (FPHYA). Coincidently the 2014 study was wrapping up at the genesis of the Flint Water Crisis (FWC). The FWC impacted residents of all ages in Flint. Specifically, the youth of Flint were exposed to lead (a neuro-toxin) and other contaminants through the water system which impacted them physically and cognitively. National media outlets disseminated headlines across the world that Flint youth would have behavioral (aggression) issues and struggle academically as a result of their exposure to lead. The FPHYA was designed to provide positive messages to and about Flint youth. It is an introduction to careers in public health, medicine, and research for Flint Youth. It creates a space for Flint youth to work through their lived experience of the FWC while learning the important role public health and research plays in recovering from an environmental public health crisis. More importantly, it is a pathway to public health careers providing didactic sessions, local mentors and internships.

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.

scholarly journals The Challenge of Digital transformation in Public Health in Europe?

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
L Velez-Lapão
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Technology Use ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Digital Transformation ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Healthcare Workforce ◽  
Digital Services ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Healthcare systems are facing many challenges, from demographics to multi-morbidities that are associated with increasing the demand for more services. The new technologies are thought to be a solution to these problems. However, to address these problems with digitalization of healthcare it will imply the combination of proper use of technologies, aligned with integrated working-processes and skilled professionals. Methods This study provides a scoping review on existing public health digital services and aimed to identify the main digitalization challenges, from competencies to technology use. The databases of Pubmed and Ebsco were searched. Results 17 papers were selected, and the three main priorities were identified. First, it will highlight the challenges associated with the digitalization of healthcare, the second the implementation of digital services, considering a method to design online service, the third the impact of digitalization on healthcare workforce performance. An overview of the major effects of transformative technologies (e.g. eHealth services, Internet of Things solutions, Artificial Intelligence) on the healthcare workforce will be addressed. Moreover, to what extent is the digital transition affecting formal qualifications of public health professionals? What are the major implications of technological change for future skill needs and competences of the public health workforce? Finally, the discussion examines the challenges of digitalization for public health services in Europe. Conclusions Proper digitalization of healthcare will enable changes in the paradigm of healthcare delivery as well as in the mechanism for patients’ participation and engagement. The sustainability of healthcare will depend on how efficient we will make digital-services design. Key words Digital health, Public Health, Digital Transformation, Public Health professionals, Europe

Strategic Approach to Assess Training Needs Across a Diverse Region

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 28S-34S ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa C. McCormick ◽  
Justine J. Reel ◽  
Melissa Alperin ◽  
Laura M. Lloyd ◽  
Kathleen R. Miner
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Needs Assessment ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Training Needs ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Health Departments ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Training ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Competency Based

The mission of the Region IV (R-IV) Public Health Training Center (PHTC), headquartered at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Atlanta, GA, is to develop and implement programming to train and educate public health professionals in U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Region IV. To identify public health workforce development needs, the R-IV PHTC created a systematic process that included the implementation of a variety of strategies, to gain insights from each state within the diverse region. Conducting regular needs assessments is an integral step to ensure trainings are relevant and meet the needs of public health professionals. To this end, the PHTC employed a mixed methods approach to gather information on both competency-based and non–competency-based training needs, as well as training needs within R-IV’s content focus area of infectious disease. In R-IV there is great variability between the structures of the state and local health departments (e.g., some centralized, some decentralized), each of which faces different funding challenges and works with different service delivery models and regulatory authorities. Moreover, states have diverse populations (e.g., races, urban/rural, migrant/refugees, tribal, Appalachian) and face a wide range of public health priority concerns. Health departments were found to be at different stages of readiness to undertake a training needs assessment due to a number of issues, including their stage of pursuing Public Health Accreditation Board accreditation and recent participation in other needs assessment efforts. The R-IV PHTC approach to assessing training needs within this challenging environment is described.

scholarly journals Engaging a wider public health workforce: bringing public health into architecture education

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
R Marsh ◽  
P Pilkington ◽  
E Marco ◽  
L Rice
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Built Environment ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Training ◽  
Health Promoting ◽  
Health Concepts

Abstract Background Current public health challenges necessitate the closer working of public health with built environment professionals. Despite growing evidence of benefits, there remains little progress in practice. Architects can play a key role in ensuring urban and building design is health promoting, however there is no requirement to teach health by architectural accreditation bodies across Europe. Objectives In the United Kingdom in 2010, the Public Health Practitioner in Residence programme (PHPiR) was established to address this situation. Public health professionals are embedded within the Faculty of Environment and Technology at the University of the West of England, and contribute to research, pedagogic programme development, teaching and mentoring. The aim was to embed public health concepts and issues into architecture training, to empower the profession as part of the wider workforce, to improve health and wellbeing when designing buildings and places. The PHPiR was evaluated using the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework. Data was collected (questionnaires, focus group, semi-structured interviews, programme documentation) on a Masters of Architecture cohort (N = 34) at intervals from 2011-2019 to see if the PHPiR has long lasting effects as students enter practice. Results Public health concepts including; inequalities, life course approach, and social capital, became embedded into the architecture curriculum. Projects produced had increased reference to wider health promoting issues and participants thinking shifted from the building itself to who would use the building, suggesting the intervention achieved its aims. Conclusions The PHPiR offers a novel approach for built environment professions to better understand public health issues and the relevance to their chosen fields. This model could be applied to other courses and replicated in educational institutions and public health training programmes across Europe. Key messages The PHPiR influenced the architecture curriculum, improved architects understanding and public health issues and concepts, and empowered them to create more health promoting environments. Embedding public health professionals into training for other disciplines may be an effective, sustainable method for increasing the wider public health workforce.

Preparing Public Health Professionals to Address Social Injustices Through Critical Service-Learning

2021 ◽  
pp. 237337992110071
Author(s):  
R. Tyler Derreth ◽  
Vanya C. Jones ◽  
Mindi B. Levin
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Disparities ◽  
Social Change ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Health Knowledge ◽  
Public Health Practice ◽  
Practice Research ◽  
Racial Justice ◽  
Public Health Professionals

The 2020 summer of protests for racial justice amid continued police violence coupled with the widening health disparities due to COVID-19 have made the need for social change and community-informed public health practice abundantly clear. Public health professionals need to combine public health knowledge with collaboration, communication, and reflection to address these health disparities and social injustices. Likewise, as public health educators, we need to develop curricula that train students in these complex skills in order to be effective practitioners. To do this, public health schools and programs should adopt critical service-learning as a central pedagogy in curricula because it is specifically designed to address our current crises with its combination of practice, research, and reflection that together aims for social change. As a means of institutionalizing the pedagogy, faculty can practice and advocate for resources as faculty champions of service-learning.

Using Social Marketing to Promote a Healthy Diet and Physical Activity: The Need for Training Public Health Professionals

2003 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 53-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Cassady ◽  
Jennifer Culp ◽  
Mitchell Watnik
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Marketing ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Marketing Resources ◽  
Diet And Physical Activity ◽  
Training Resources

The current public health workforce may not be prepared for the challenge of implementing social marketing programs, as there is only limited training on social marketing offered by schools of public health. Therefore, training programs for working public health professionals may be warranted. An inventory of current social marketing resources revealed a variety of conferences, journals, and World Wide Web sites that either include or are devoted to social marketing. However, a survey of public health professionals who have direct responsibility for social marketing programs indicates that they use these resources in only a limited fashion. Recommendations include marketing current training resources to increase their use by working professionals, expanding the number and location of training conferences, and exploring opportunities for distance education.

scholarly journals Preferred modalities for delivering continuing education to the public health workforce: a scoping review

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 116-125
Author(s):  
Anya Archer ◽  
Isha Berry ◽  
Uttam Bajwa ◽  
Robyn Kalda ◽  
Erica Di Ruggiero
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Continuing Education ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Health Workforce ◽  
Organizational Support ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
Public Health Training ◽  
Scoping Reviews

Introduction Continuing education (CE) can help public health professionals maintain and further develop their knowledge and skills to adapt to the changing public health landscape. This scoping review aims to identify the preferred modalities for delivering CE to public health professionals and to determine how equity has been incorporated into public health training. Methods Using the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews as a guide, we searched four databases for peer-reviewed primary research studies that evaluated public health workforce CE modalities. Results The review included 33 studies published between 1 January 2000 and 6 August 2019 from over 11 countries. Most articles broadly described their training audience as public health professionals employed by government or non-governmental organizations. Delivery methods included online, in-person or blended learning (combining online and in-person instruction). Learners strongly preferred self-directed approaches. Organizational support, including protected time for professional development during work hours, was an important enabler of training completion. Commonly cited barriers included course duration and a high number of contact hours. Conclusion Findings suggest that there is no single preferred training modality. We identified three elements that influence modality preference: design, delivery and organizational support. Modality should be determined by participants’ location, needs and previous experiences to ensure the content is relevant and delivered in a way that equips learners to apply the knowledge gained.

Training of public health professionals in developing countries

2021 ◽  
pp. 703-708
Author(s):  
San Hone ◽  
Roger Detels
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Primary Care Providers ◽  
Public Health Workforce ◽  
Health Coverage ◽  
Health Security ◽  
Public Health Professionals ◽  
National Economies

Developing countries are asserting tremendous efforts to achieve universal health coverage (UHC) through primary healthcare-led approaches. Quality primary healthcare (PHC) is essential for improving health, social stability, sound national economies, and health security for all countries, rich or poor. Appropriate and competent training for public health professionals at every level, including core primary care providers, is therefore crucial for providing quality PHC, ensuring the effectiveness of the health system and, ultimately, the health of a country’s citizens. The training must embrace enduring strategies through postgraduate, refresher training, and online coaching (telemedicine) to ensure the continued competency of the public health workforce. This chapter addresses each of these issues in greater depth and makes suggestions for improvement and enhancement of health training in developing countries.

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