Public Health Degree Research Articles

Diversity and Discrepancies in Water‐related University Rankings: Is There a Need for More Consistency or Is There Value in Breadth?

Diversity and Discrepancies in Water‐related University Rankings: Is There a Need for More Consistency or Is There Value in Breadth?

ASGE Past President's Address.

John J. Vargo, MD, MPH, MASGE (Author photo 1, Author photo 2, Author photo 3, Author photo 4, Author photo 5, Author photo 6), is an associate professor of medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine at Case Western University. He is a member of the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition in the Digestive Disease and Surgery Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.Author photo 2Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Cleveland Clinic. I am blessed to be surrounded by one of the finest faculties and groups of fellows in the world.View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT)Author photo 3World Cup of Endoscopy at Digestive Disease Week. The alter ego comes out. Now, what to do with the costumes?View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT)Author photo 4With my dear friends Seiichiro Abe, Yutaka Saito, and Amit Bhatt.View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT)Author photo 5With my friend of many years, the incomparable G.S. Raju.View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT)Author photo 6My family: my wife Mary and our sons (left to right) Kevin, John, and Matthew.View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT) Dr Vargo received his medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and completed his internal medicine residency training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He then completed gastroenterology and hepatology fellowships at the Cleveland Clinic and received training in advanced endoscopy at the same institution. After fulfilling a 3-year commitment in the United States Navy while stationed at Bethesda National Naval Medical Center as director of endoscopy and consultant in gastroenterology for the United States Capitol, he returned to the Cleveland Clinic in the section of advanced endoscopy. During his tenure, Dr Vargo developed a keen interest in clinical research. After securing a career development award from the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the American Digestive Health Foundation, Dr Vargo obtained a Master of Public Health degree from Case Western University. This turned out to be a transformational event, which led to the development of numerous endoscopic research projects focusing on clinical outcomes, quality, and cost-effectiveness. This resulted in the publication of over 250 articles in the peer-reviewed literature. Dr Vargo served as chair of the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and vice chair for the Digestive Disease and Surgery Institute for 8 years. He also served as president of the Cleveland Clinic’s medical staff and sat on the institution’s Board of Governors. He is currently the director of Enterprise Endoscopy Operations, director of Endoscopic Research and Innovation, and head of the Section of Advanced Endoscopy. He has lectured and performed endoscopic demonstrations around the globe and has been honored with fellowships in 3 international gastroenterology societies. He has been invited faculty for numerous courses for ASGE and has been co-director of ASGE’s annual postgraduate course twice. He has held numerous positions in ASGE, including chair of the Training Committee. During his tenure, the committee was able to develop an advanced endoscopy training directory and began development of the forerunner of the advanced endoscopy match program. Dr Vargo served as president of ASGE from 2019 to 2020. During this entropic time of the COVID-19 pandemic, he led the society through a transition to a virtual education and communications platform, which ensured that information on the COVID-19 pandemic was expediently distributed via weekly webinars, fast-tracked articles in GIE, and expedient practice guidelines that were co-authored with ASGE’s sister societies. During his presidency, the entire framework of ASGE’s educational mission was reframed and crystallized to meet the needs of gastroenterologists in the United States and around the world. Dr Vargo has trained a multitude of general gastroenterology and advanced endoscopy fellows over the years, who are now scattered around the United States and throughout the world. He is a perennial Top Doctors and Best Doctors in America selection. Dr Vargo received teacher-of-the-year awards from his gastroenterology fellows a total of 5 times over his career. Areas of interest in his practice include ERCP, EUS, the treatment of Barrett’s esophagus, artificial intelligence, and the development of endoscopic devices. All authors disclosed no financial relationships. https://www.videogie.org/cms/asset/776b53df-e503-4e22-94df-3f45da5ce4ab/mmc1.mp4Loading ... Download .mp4 (179.53 MB) Help with .mp4 files Video 1

OVERVIEW OF FACTORS THAT AFFECT THE UTILIZATION OF HEALTH CENTER LIU DISTRICT SABBANGPARU WAJO REGENCY

Health care is one of the determinants of public health degrees. One of the targets is the Center for Public Health (Puskesmas). Puskesmas is a functional unit that is a center for public health development that also fosters community participation in addition to providing comprehensive and integrated services to the community in its work area in the form of basic activities. According to the Wajo district health office, LIU health center is a health center that has the lowest number of kunjugan compared to other health centers in Wajo regency. The lack of utilization of health services in LIU Health Center is the background of the author doing this study. The purpose of this study is to find out the picture of factors that affect the utilization of LIU health centers based on community knowledge and the distance of community residence with health centers. The type of research used is a descriptive survey. How to take samples is done with purposifve sampling technique. Based on the results of the study obtained that showed that of 50 respondents (44.7%) who use health centers, who have enough knowledge as many as 35 respondents (31.3%) and who have less knowledge as many as 15 respondents (13.4%) while of 62 respondents (55.3%) who do not use health centers, there are 25 respondents (22.3%) who have enough knowledge and who have less knowledge as many as 37 respondents (33.0%). Meanwhile, of the 50 respondents (44.7%) utilizing health centers that have a close residence distance to the health center as many as 33 respondents (29.5%) and those who have a distance of residence far from the health center as many as 17 respondents (15.2%) while those who do not use the health center as many as 62 respondents (55.3%) who have a close residence distance to the health center as many as 25 respondents (22.3%) and who have a distance of residence with the health center as many as 37 respondents (33.0%). Therefore it can be concluded that there is a relationship between knowledge and the utilization of Liu's health center. From the results of the study also found that there is a relationship between the distance of the community and the utilization of puskesmas.

Form Follows Function: A New Structure for a School of Public Health in the 21st Century.

National discussions around education in public health in the early 2010s and the subsequent revisions to accreditation criteria for schools of public health in 2016 resulted in a dramatic shift away from the traditional 5 core discipline model in requirements for core curricula and the offering of specific master of public health degrees. With greater flexibility and opportunities for innovation, the College of Public Health at the University of South Florida embarked on a reexamination of its organizational structure, which, like many accredited schools, was based on the old 5 core discipline model. A transparent, inclusive, and deliberative process ultimately resulted in the elimination of departments in favor of a unified faculty whose collective discipline is public health. Decisions made along the way, unexpected opportunities that arose in the implementation, as well as challenges and early results are discussed.

Postgraduate Employment Outcomes of Undergraduate and Graduate Public Health Students : A Scoping Review.

A key goal of schools and programs of public health is to prepare graduates for careers in the public health workforce after graduation, but are they achieving this goal? We assessed how the employment outcomes of students earning public health degrees are collected and described in the literature. Using the Kirkpatrick model of training evaluation as a framework, we conducted a 6-step scoping review: (1) formulating the research question, (2) identifying relevant studies, (3) selecting studies, (4) charting the data, (5) collating and summarizing the results, and (6) consulting stakeholders. We included articles published from January 1, 1993, through July 4, 2020, that provided data on employment status, employment sector/industry, job function, or salary of public health graduates. We excluded articles that were not written in English and were about dual-degree (ie, doctor of medicine-master of public health) students. We found and reviewed 630 articles. We found 33 relevant articles. Most articles focused on a single school and combined multiple graduating classes, focused on subspecializations of public health, or focused on graduates' satisfaction with their curriculum but not employment outcomes. Data were inconsistently categorized, and studies were difficult to compare. Research on public health graduates' employment outcomes is scarce and does not follow consistent protocols. New standards should be adopted to systematize the collection of data on employment outcomes of public health graduates.

Dual MD-MPH Degree Students in the United States: Moving the Medical Workforce Toward Population Health.

A growing need exists to train physicians in population health to meet the increasing need and demand for physicians with leadership, health data management/metrics, and epidemiology skills to better serve the health of the community. This study examines current trends in students pursuing a dual doctor of medicine (MD)-master of public health (MPH) degree (MD-MPH) in the United States. We conducted an extensive literature review of existing MD-MPH databases to determine characteristics (eg, sex, race/ethnicity, MPH area of study) of this student cohort in 2019. We examined a trend in the MD community to pursue an MPH career, adding additional public health and health care policy training to the MD workforce. We conducted targeted telephone interviews with 20 admissions personnel and faculty at schools offering MD-MPH degrees in the United States with the highest number of matriculants and graduates. Interviews focused on curricula trends in medical schools that offer an MD-MPH degree. No literature describes the US MD-MPH cohort, and available MD-MPH databases are limited and incomplete. We found a 434% increase in the number of students pursuing an MD-MPH degree from 2010 to 2018. The rate of growth was greater than the increase in either the number of medical students (16%) or the number of MPH students (65%) alone. Moreover, MD-MPH students as a percentage of total MPH students more than tripled, from 1.1% in 2010 to 3.6% in 2018. As more MD students pursue public health training, the impact of an MPH degree on medical school curricula, MD-MPH graduates, and MD-MPH career pursuits should be studied using accurate and comprehensive databases.

Attracting New Talent to the Governmental Public Health Workforce: Strategies for Improved Recruitment of Public Health Graduates.

Governmental public health (GPH) agencies need a diverse, skilled, and motivated workforce to advance health and well-being, but they face a number of recruitment challenges. While there has been massive growth in public health degree programs and graduates, those with a degree in public health are underrepresented in the GPH workforce. This study evaluates potential reasons undergraduate and graduate public health degree holders are underrepresented in the GPH workforce, assesses student awareness of and interest in GPH jobs, and identifies strategies for improved recruitment. We conducted pilot focus groups to explore public health students' interest in working for GPH agencies, obstacles to employment, and how this career path could be better promoted. Eight focus groups were conducted with a total of 33 participants at 3 universities and at the Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association. Participants were enrolled full-time in or graduated within the last year from a public health bachelor's degree program or a public health master's degree program. Undergraduates had declared a public health major and were in their senior year; graduate students were in their second year and actively job seeking; or participants graduated within the past 12 months. The focus groups sought to capture students' perspectives of GPH agencies and how they believe recruitment can be improved. Participants described attractive job attributes including fulfilling, meaningful work; a position at a mission-driven organization; and the opportunity to make an impact on their community. Governmental public health agencies were viewed as bureaucratic, lacking innovation, and underresourced. Participants reported difficulties accessing and finding relevant job postings. Key to effectively recruiting and retaining new graduates is understanding their perceptions about/experiences with GPH agencies. While GPH jobs have desired attributes, participants reported that health departments are not effectively recruiting them.

Assessment of the healthcare managerial skills offered by the Italian post-graduate schools of public health.

The Italian National Health Service (Servizio Sanitario Nazionale, SSN) is facing relevant challenges due to decreased financing and increased healthcare costs (1). In this complex framework, most of the Italian Medical Doctors, after obtaining their Specialization degree in Public Health, develop their careers in organizational and managerial roles in public and private health organizations, i.e. hospitals, local health units, health districts or national and international agencies (1, 2). Public health technical competencies, in particular policy and management, are of crucial importance to develop, run and support healthcare services. However, some gaps exist between current public health needs and the extent to which Public Health Residents are trained in the above fields (3, 4). The study is a cross-sectional cognitive survey carried out through a questionnaire sent by e-mail to Residents and Directors of the Italian Schools of Public Health, from May to November 2018. The questionnaire was sent only to the accredited Schools which had all four years of the course running. The questionnaire investigated 35 managerial topics divided into 4 macro-areas. It was sent to both Directors of the SPHs and the Residents of 32 Schools. The latter were asked to provide a single collective answer per School. Respondents could assign a score from 1 (topic not addressed at all) to 4 (topic addressed extensively and linked to other related topics) to each item, also taking into account the skills acquired through internships, seminars, etc. that involved all the Residents. Answers were received from the Residents of 30/32 (93.8%) SPHs and from 15/32 (46.9%) of the Directors. Scores given by the Directors were higher than the ones of the Residents for every topic, and for 17 out of 35 items (48.6%) a statistically significant difference has been obtained. In the overall score of 3 macro-areas out of 4 (General issues, Managerial tools and macro-organisational Models) there are statistically significant differences. In Soft skills macro-area, the single scores of all topics are generally low for both Directors and Residents. The study shows that the Residents declare a strong need for training improvement in the field pf healthcare organization and management: the median score is equal to or greater than 3 (topic addressed extensively) in only a few answers. The comparison between Directors' and Residents' scores highlights a different perception of the training offered in these areas. The study results could be pivotal for the improvement of the managerial skills provided to the Residents in Public Health of the Country.

Training tomorrow's doctors: the impact of a Student Selected Component in Global Health during medical school.

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Introduction:Several reports highlight the importance of global health education (GHE) for training tomorrow's doctors. In 2006, Newcastle University Medical School developed a Student Selected Component (SSC) in Global Health. We followed up students who completed the SSC to assess the impact on their experience as practising clinicians and postgraduate career development. Methods:We developed an electronic survey including questions about speciality choice, postgraduate qualifications, extracurricular activity and international work. Surveys were sent to 72 SSC participants identified between 2006-2017 through the Newcastle University Alumni and Supporters network and social media. Results: Surveys were returned by 37 (51%) SSC participants; 25 (71%) and 16 (46%) believed the SSC had influenced their clinical practice and career choice, respectively. Twenty-two (59%) obtained an intercalated degree programme, of whom nine (24%) did a Masters programme specifically in Global Health and four (11%), and two (5%) completed a Masters degree in Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases respectively, both key themes within GHE. Four (11%) undertook, and 10 (29%) were considering postgraduate study related to global health, of whom three (9%) specified undertaking a Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (DTM&H) and one (3%) studying a Masters degree in Public Health. Five (14%) had, and 19 (54%) were planning to work abroad, most referring to work in humanitarian or low resource settings and GHE programmes. Discussion and Conclusion:Participation in an SSC in Global Health may affect positive change in students' clinical practice and help inform academic and clinical career choice. Whilst a causative relationship cannot be inferred, the experience may support or increase the pursuit of additional global health-related qualifications, research and international health work. Medical schools that endeavour to produce graduates motivated to tackle our society's global health challenges should champion comprehensive global health modules for students.

Public Health Officials and COVID-19: Leadership, Politics, and the Pandemic.

Public Health Officials and COVID-19: Leadership, Politics, and the Pandemic.

A Movement in the Making: Building Collaborations with Public Health Experts and Policymakers

For public health to meet the challenges of COVID-19 and beyond, to increase evidence-based decision making, and to realize public health as a public good, we need a broad, intentional movement to build coalitions among public health experts in academia, research, practice, and the public sector. The authors discuss how failure to invest in public health systems, inadequate health communications, and poor public health practice during the COVID-19 pandemic opened the door for informal systems of information sharing and the consequences thereof. The lesson that public health professionals and public health associations need to draw from the COVID-19 pandemic is that communicating effectively is critical to ensuring that evidence, even emerging evidence, guides decision-makers. We discuss the challenges of evidence-based decision-making in public health policymaking and highlight examples of academic institutions that have invested in public health knowledge translation. Finally, we describe how the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree was designed to bridge communities of practice, and what is needed for those with DrPH training to stand up and meet the moment.

The DrPH Coalition: Advancing Public Health Practice and Leadership in the 21st Century

This article provides a brief background on the history of the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) degree, draws a distinction between a DrPH (a practice-based, leadership training degree) with PhD (research-based degree), lists CEPH competencies and DrPH community training needs, and highlights the critical need for competent practitioners to lead the public health responses. Further, it also introduces the DrPH Coalition, a grassroots organization focused on advocating the systems change efforts including uplifting competently trained public health practitioners and leaders. It also introduces the HPHR-DrPH Coalition collaborative Special Edition (35).

Gamification and education: A pragmatic approach with two examples of implementation.

Leveraging elements of game design and theories of human motivation, gamification provides a variety of techniques to engage learners in novel ways. Our Clinical and Translational Science Award created the software platform (Kaizen-Education©) to deliver gamified educational content in 2012. Here, we explore two novel use cases of this platform to provide practical insights for leveraging these methods in educational settings: (1) national training in rigor, reproducibility, and transparency and (2) attainment of learner competency (n = 7) as a gauge of curricular effectiveness across Master of Public Health degree tracks (n = 5). Data were captured in real time during player interaction with Kaizen-Education© to provide descriptive analyses of player engagement in both implementation examples. We then assessed item analysis to assess knowledge gain and competency attainment. We have just begun to leverage the potential for gamification to engage learners, enhance knowledge acquisition, and document completion of training, across various learning environments. We encourage a systematic approach to gamification applying insights from self-determination theory to learners and learning environments, a methodical approach to game design and rigorous analysis after implementation to generate evidence-based insights to maximize educational return for time invested.

Theory-Informed Course Design: Applications of Bloom’s Taxonomy in Undergraduate Public Health Courses

The public health workforce needs an array of knowledge and skills to effectively address current and future public health challenges. While existing competency models establish educational objectives for public health degree programs, there is insufficient guidance on how academic programs should develop these competencies, and workforce assessments continue to identify skills gaps in areas such as critical thinking and problem analysis. In this article, we describe an approach for designing undergraduate public health courses based on the hierarchy of cognitive processes in Bloom’s taxonomy. Course activities are sequenced to provide students with opportunities to attain increasing mastery of course concepts and analytical skills, from remembering new concepts to applying them in case studies and creating original analyses and proposals. This simple approach has been applied to three separate courses taught by multiple instructors over 3 years and has received positive feedback from students. By explicitly communicating the theoretical basis for course activities, this approach also promotes metacognitive knowledge in students that can foster their continued learning success.

Salary Differences Between Schools of Medicine and Schools of Public Health for Nonclinical PhD Faculty: A Case Study of One Large Multicampus University System.

There are no evidence-based findings to assist professionals with advanced public health and social science degrees in choosing the appropriate academic location. A cross-sectional case study in 2019 was conducted using publicly available online data of full-time, nonclinical, doctoral-level academic faculty in schools of public health (SOPHs) and schools of medicine (SOMs), within one large university system. Analyses included descriptive statistics and generalized linear regression models comparing salaries between school types by academic rank, after gender and race/ethnicity adjustment. The study included 181 faculty members, 35.8% assistant, 34.1% associate, and 30.1% full professors. After accounting for race/ethnicity and gender, SOM assistant and associate professors had 9% (P = .03) and 14% (P = .008) higher mean salaries than SOPH counterparts. Findings suggest slight salary advantages for SOM faculty for early- to mid-career PhDs in one university system. Factors such as start-up packages, time to promotion, and grant funding need further exploration.

A tribute to some of the doctors who died from COVID-19

A tribute to some of the doctors who died from COVID-19

Transnational educational partnerships: achieving public health impact through cross-cultural pedagogical approaches in Haiti

ABSTRACT As part of the growing movement of transnational educational partnerships, Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) partnered with the Université Publique du Nord au Cap-Haitïen (UPNCH) in January 2017 to launch the first undergraduate public health degree program in Haiti with the goal of increasing public health educational capacity in the country. In January 2018, WUSTL and UPNCH introduced the course Introduction to Public Health for the first cohort of public health students, offering the opportunity to practice and assess cross-cultural pedagogy as well as the engagement of students in relevant public health issues impacting Haiti. The goal of the partnership between WUSTL and UPNCH is to further public health education in Haiti, and to help create future public health leaders for the country. Through an assessment of the introductory course, the authors sought to gauge the impact of cross-cultural pedagogy and cooperative learning strategies in Haiti. In addition to describing the history and context of the partnership, this study used qualitative methods to assess student responses to the course through both observational data as well as student course evaluations. Thirty-two students completed course evaluations, providing insight into cross-cultural approaches as well as the effectiveness of collaborative pedagogy in Haiti. Despite challenges related to logistics and resources, students’ responses were overwhelmingly supportive of the course’s novel approach as well as the transnational partnership between WUSTL and UPNCH. Findings from this case example support existing research which claims successful approaches ensure cross-cultural pedagogy and bi-directional benefits via continual engagement between partners.

We Want to Talk About BS

We Want to Talk About BS

Preparing Learners for Community-Engaged Public Health Practice

Public health promotes and protects the health of people and the communities in which they live. As such, community health assessment and engagement are critical elements that Master of Public Health (MPH) students must learn. Even so, those with graduate public health degrees often lack the ability to engage in this foundational aspect of public health practice. The purpose of this paper is to describe a curricular model that utilizes didactic preparation along with the collaboration of community-academic partners (CAPs) in a service-learning format to prepare MPH students for successful community assessment and engagement. In addition to enhancing the learning experience for students, this curricular approach assures meaningful engagement which benefits communities, especially those which are underserved. The relationships established through the implementation of this model were critical in the COVID-19 community response.

Dietetic Workforce Capacity Assessment for Public Health Nutrition and Community Nutrition

Worldwide, there is a continued rise in malnutrition and noncommunicable disease, along with rapidly changing dietary patterns, demographics, and climate and persistent economic inequality and instability. These trends have led to a national and global focus on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions to improve population health. A well-trained public health and community nutrition workforce is critical to manage and contribute to these efforts. The study describes the current public health and community nutrition workforce and factors influencing registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) to work in these settings and characterizes RDN preparedness, training, and competency in public health and community nutrition. The study was comprised of a cross-sectional, online survey of mostly US RDNs working in public health/community nutrition and semistructured telephone interviews with US-based and global public health and community nutrition experts. RStudio version 1.1.442 was used to manage and descriptively analyze survey data. Thematic analysis was conducted to evaluate expert interviews. Survey participants (n = 316) were primarily women (98%) and White (84%) with the RDN credential (91%) and advanced degrees (65%). Most reported that non-RDNs are performing nutrition-related duties at their organizations. Respondents generally rated themselves as better prepared to perform community nutrition vs public health functions. Interviews were conducted with 7 US-based experts and 5 international experts. Experts reported that non-RDNs often fill nutrition-related positions in public health, and RDNs should more actively pursue emerging public health opportunities. Experts suggested that RDNs are more desirable job candidates if they have advanced public health degrees or prior experience in public health or community nutrition and that dietetic training programs need to more rigorously incorporate public health training and experience. Significant opportunity exists to improve the preparedness and training of the current dietetic workforce to increase capacity and meet emerging needs in public health and community nutrition.