KNOWLEDGE
3.3. b A list of the continuing education programs, other than certificate programs, offered by the school, including number of participants served, for 2011/12 and 2012/13 Those programs offered in
a distance-learning format should be identified.
Continuing Education Courses. Currently, the College offers 2 continuing education courses through the Professional and Noncredit Education (PNE) division of OSU Ecampus (http://pne.oregonstate.edu). The PNE division assists academic units in the design and delivery of continuing education courses that meet high priority workforce and community needs. In response to recommendations of our Community Advisory Council, the College also plans to offer an additional course on the fundamentals of public health, which is currently in development. We have a target of offering 3 continuing education courses annually (see Objective 4.3 in Table 1.2.c.).
Childhood Food Insecurity (Online). Through an extension partnership investment grant, matching funds from Providence Health Plans and OHSU, and bonus funds from Oregon Department of Human Services, Extension Family and Community Health convened a coalition of community partners to develop a continuing education course to teach clinicians that treat low income children in a medical setting to screen for food insecurity. This course can be accessed at
http://pne.oregonstate.edu/catalog/childhood-food-insecurity. Course participation by over 1,000 health physicians and other allied health professionals from 36 states and Canada has resulted in enhanced sensitivity to the problem, consistent screening in some clinics that treat children from food insecure households, and increased distribution of outreach and education materials to parents and caregivers of children in food insecure households. OHSU medical students are now being encouraged to take the course through mechanisms including their Rural and Community Health Clerkship. Although PNE has not collected data on enrollment or course completion, their data on unique visitors is an indication of the popularity of the course: during the period of March 25, 2012 to March 25, 2013, this course had 827 unique visitors.
Mastery of Aging Well (Online). This program produced by Sharon Johnson focuses on key issues of healthy aging, including memory, depression, medication, food and physical activity. The course can be accessed at http://pne.oregonstate.edu/mastery-aging-well. In addition to the 5 on-line modules, there is an optional DVD learning package available for purchase; the DVD series can be used as a video book club. Of note, in collaboration with AARP Oregon,
individuals from community-based organizations (statewide) are trained in facilitating video book clubs using these materials in their DVD format. Groups using the approach currently include Elders in Action, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and the Multnomah Library system. The PNE division reports that during the period of March 25, 2012 to March 25, 2013, this course had 1500 unique visitors.
Fundamentals of Public Health (Online). Although many practicing professionals are highly skilled in the performance of their job duties, many lack the broad understanding of public health necessary to engage in strategic thinking and leadership activities. Our College is responding to this need by developing an online continuing education course that can be used by local health departments and other employers as an orientation to public health work. The course will also be available to health care professionals seeking to broaden their understanding of prevention-based work. We have engaged the Professional and Noncredit Education division of OSU’s Ecampus to convert our introductory undergraduate course in public health (already offered online) into a condensed format. This work will be completed in the second half of 2013.
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Introduction to the Health Care System. In 2011/12, we also made special arrangements to offer an additional section of 1 of our public health undergraduate courses (H 210: Introduction to the Health Care System) that employees of Samaritan Health Services (SHS)
(http://www.samhealth.org/aboutus/Pages/default.aspx) could enroll in as non-degree seeking students. We worked with the OSU Registrar’s Office to waive the application fee for SHS employees. This additional section of the course was offered off-campus, at a SHS building in order to make it more accessible to SHS employees. In total, 9 SHS employees completed the course. Although we did not have the resources to offer sections of other undergraduate courses specifically targeted to SHS employees this year, we will work to expedite admissions and enrollment for any SHS employee wanting to register for one of our on-campus courses. In addition, we have notified SHS that the Graduate Certificate in Public Health (see Criterion 3.3.c.) may be an option for some SHS employees. We will continue to explore continuing education options for SHS employees that will be mutually beneficial to all parties.
Public Health Policy Institute. In 2012, Jeff Luck and Jangho Yoon (faculty members in Health Management & Policy) secured funding from the Public Health Division of the Oregon Health Authority to develop curriculum for a Public Health Policy Institute to train state and county public health practitioners in health policy. They were also contracted to teach the course in Summer 2013, in collaboration with other HMP faculty and with support from Health Policy doctoral students. The Oregon Public Health Policy Institute was designed to enhance public health policy competencies among state and local health department staff. Twenty participants from 4 state public health programs and 5 local health departments gathered at OSU on August 21-23, 2013 to share their experiences and learn practical policy skills. Short instructional sessions covered skills such as using data to quantify the impact of policies, synthesizing evidence about effective policies, drafting policy statements and communicating with
stakeholders. Most of the institute involved hands-on team exercises where participants applied these skills to their policy topics. Faculty led participants through a series of 10 steps in the development, implementation and evaluation of public health policy in order to provide guidance as they engage in policy work. Understanding these steps also helps build policy development capacity that supports ongoing accreditation efforts by Oregon health departments. Panel discussions brought additional insights from senior Oregon health experts.
Conferences and Training. Our College has also contributed to continuing education through conferences.
Oregon Public Health Association (OPHA) Annual Conference and Meeting. Our College is 1 of several sponsors and the host institution of the annual OPHA conference. Information about the conference can be found at http://www.oregonpublichealth.org/opha-conference. Many of the attendees, such as environmental health specialists, are required to participate in continuing education to maintain their professional registration. The OPHA conference serves this need. The conference has been held in Corvallis, Oregon on the OSU campus since 2005. More than 450 people attended the 2011 meeting, and 500 attended the 2012 conference. Each year, our College’s faculty and students in the public health disciplines have a strong presence at the conference, giving presentations, serving as session moderators and discussants, participating in networking sessions, judging posters for the poster award, and participating in conference organization. For a number of years, Marie Harvey (Associate Dean) has been the Chair of the program committee for the OPHA annual conference.
Priester National Health Extension Conference. OSU hosted this national continuing
OSU College of Public Health and Human Sciences Page 173 of retired USDA National Program Leader Jeanne Priester, offered opportunities for professionals from the Cooperative Extension System, institutions of higher education, and their many partners to strengthen practice in health extension by sharing successful programs, results of community- engaged research, and strategies for collaboration.
OSU Gerontology Conference. Extension’s Family and Community Health program is also responsible for organizing and hosting the annual statewide gerontology conference that is attended by professionals, faculty members, and students representing diverse health fields. Information about the conference can be found at http://osugero.org. As noted earlier, our Center for Healthy Aging Research co-sponsors the conference. We hosted the 36th annual conference on April 11-12, 2012 and the 37th annual conference on April 3-4, 2013 at OSU’s CH2M Hill Alumni Center, and the 38th annual conference scheduled for April 2-3, 2014 will be held in the same location on campus. This conference is the largest on aging in the Pacific Northwest and annually attracts between 300-400 participants. The OSU Gerontology Conference offers training preapproved for continuing education credit by the Oregon Department of Human Services, Oregon Board of Pharmacy, Oregon State Board of Nursing Home Administrators, and the Oregon State Board of Licensed Clinical Social Workers.
The Oregon Geriatric Education Center. The Extension Family and Community Health program is a consortium partner in The Oregon Geriatric Education Center (OGEC). Other partners are the OSU College of Pharmacy, the Oregon Health and Science University (medicine and nursing), and Portland State University (Institute on Aging and Social Work). OGEC is “dedicated to improving the care of older adults in Oregon through collaborative,
interdisciplinary, continuing education and professional development.” More information can be found at (http://www.ohsu.edu/xd/education/schools/school-of-nursing/about/centers/oregon- geriatric-education). OGEC provides training to health professionals who serve older adults; trains geriatric faculty and clinical students; and develops and houses educational resources related to health and aging. Training activities include, but are not limited to, those that occur at the OSU Gerontology conference (see above).
Mini-Conferences Hosted by the Oregon State University Dietetic Internship (OSUDI). In 2011/12, the OSUDI twice hosted small continuing education mini-conferences to dietetic interns and practitioners. One was held at Salem Hospital and 15 participants (7 practitioners) were engaged in training on the Nutrition Care Process for Geriatric Patients in Long-Term Care, on November 2, 2011. Another continuing education mini-conference on Management of Eating Disorders was hosted on February 24, 2012 for 10 participants. Each year OSUDI will provide continuing education opportunities to mini-conference participants including, but not limited to, practicing dietitians and dietetic interns and interested students, as well as nutrition and health professionals at OSU.
Webinar Series.
Our College has initiated a quarterly webinar series for public health practitioners and other health professionals. Each webinar will be archived on the College website for later viewing. Visitors to the site may also make suggestions for future webinar topics. The current webinar schedule begins in June 2013, with an additional webinar scheduled approximately every 3 months (see Objective 4.3 in Table 1.2.c.). Sessions will be taught by OSU public health faculty and invited guests.
June 25, 2013 - Ensuring Public Health at County Fairs (topics include zoonotic disease transmission, food safety, and environmental issues). The target audience for this webinar is health department employees, fair managers, Extension agents, and agriculture teachers. It will be co-sponsored by the National Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN).
OSU College of Public Health and Human Sciences Page 174 August 2013 - Advances in Chronic Disease Prevention (participants will gain an understanding of the latest research related to preventing or delaying the onset of chronic disease)
November 2013 - Environmental Health (specific topics to be identified)
February 2014 - Agricultural Injury Prevention and Farmworker Safety (specific topics to be identified)
May 2014 - TBD August 2014 – TBD
3.3.c. Description of certificate programs or other non-degree offerings of the school, including