Workforce Development

3.3.a. Description of the Program’s continuing education activities, including policies, procedures and practices that support continuing education and workforce development strategies

Separate from the degree program, the MPH faculty members provide and/or facilitate educational programs and presentations to public health and other health-related professionals. Although the Missouri State University’s Outreach program offers coordination of professional development and continuing education courses and awards continuing education units (CEUs), the Program has only offered formalized continuing education hours for one event in the past three years.

The Program also allows working professionals (and others) to take MPH courses as a non-degree seeking student and encourages such by offering all courses either in the evening, online, and/or in a blended format. To take courses on a non-degree seeking basis, students must apply for post- baccalaureate (post-bac) admission to the Graduate College. The minimum requirement for such is an undergraduate GPA of 2.5; no GRE scores are required.

With post-bac status, a student may take up to 9 graduate credit hours, after which they must be admitted to a program to take additional hours. If a post-bac student takes 9 credit hours of MPH coursework, s/he may apply such to the program of study if admitted to the MPH Program.

As shown in Table 3.3.a., the program has established two service outcome measures and related targets specific to workforce development.These outcome measures include 1) The Program develops and disseminates facts sheets regarding current public health issues to health-related professionals and students, and 2) Core faculty provide training opportunities (workshops, seminars, etc.) to public health professionals.

While Program faculty have been providing training opportunities for some time, the development and dissemination of facts sheets regarding current public health issues is a new initiative decided upon this past fall 2011 semester. These fact sheets will be distributed around campus, emailed to public health agencies and organizations throughout Missouri, and posted on the MPH website. The Program plans to develop and disseminate at least two fact sheets each academic year.

Table 3.3.a. Workforce Development Outcome Measures

Service Outcome Measure

Target 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Develop and disseminate facts sheets regarding

current public health issues to health-related professionals and students;

2/year Not in place Not in place avail at site visit

Core faculty provide training opportunities (workshops, seminars, etc.) to public health professionals;

In regard to core faculty providing training opportunities (workshops, seminars, etc.) to public health professionals, the Program strives to provide at least three such opportunities per academic year. A list of training opportunities provided or facilitated by MPH faculty members are presented in Criterion 3.3.c. (next page).

A Workforce Development Task Group was formed in fall 2010 and charged with developing plans to assess the needs of the public health workforce in and around the state of Missouri and to support professional development of this workforce. This task group includes not only MPH faculty and a student representative, but four practitioners from around the state of Missouri.

In fall 2010, the Task Group, identified what it believed to be 1) assets of the MPH Program that could support workforce, and 2) training needs in the Public Health and Health Care workforce. The

generated lists of such assets and training needs are available in Appendix K-1 and K-2, respectively. Since then, the Program Director met with groups of Local Health Department Administrators from around the state during their spring 2011 quarterly meetings and presented information regarding the availability of MPH faculty to conduct workshops/seminars, etc. for their agencies. At these meetings, the list of workforce development training topics identified by the Task Group was also distributed and the Administrators were asked for feedback. The Program Director has also informally discussed faculty availability to provide workforce development with a number of local public health

professionals (some in administrative roles and some not) and solicited informal feedback on potential training topics from these individuals.

No additional topics were identified by any of the public health administrators or other professionals mentioned above. However, the Workforce Development Task Group is currently developing a workforce needs assessment survey in collaboration with the Missouri Public Health Association Education Committee and the Missouri Institute of Community Health, and we anticipate the survey to be conducted later this spring. If possible, data from such will be shared during the site visit. The findings of this survey will be used to address workforce training and education needs of Public Health Professionals throughout Missouri by utilizing the strengths of each organization.

This survey will be sent to numerous administrators and other public health professionals around the state.

3.3.b. Description of certificate Programs or other non-degree offerings of the Program, including enrollment data for each of the last 3 years.

Not applicable

3.3.c. List of the continuing education Programs offered by the Program, including number of students served, for each of the last 3 years. Those that are offered in a distance learning format should be identified.

As mentioned above, MPH faculty provide a variety of educational programs and presentations to public health and other health-related professionals as well as to students. Table 3.3.c. (next page) provides a list of workforce development trainings offered or facilitated by MPH faculty (including number of participants) for each of the past three academic years.

Table 3.3.c. Workforce Development Trainings offered or facilitated by MPH faculty, AYs 2009-10 to 2011-12

Academic Year

MPH

Faculty Training Opportunity # of Participants 2011-2012* Claborn

(chair)

Sanchez

Duitsman

CHHS Multidisciplinary Forum, Ethics in Health and Health Care: From Bench to Bedside, November 1, 2011

How to Conduct a Community Health Assessment

Presentation to McDonald County Health Department staff and invited health practitioners in that county, August 2011 Smokebusters Trainings

(Youth tobacco use prevention education and advocacy program trainings)

Sept. 29, 2011—Co HD Practitioners Oct 4, 2010 —School Health Educators

205 7 9 (+29 youth) 3 (+11 youth) 2010-2011 2010-2011, contd. Claborn (chair) Duitsman Duitsman Duitsman

CHHS Multidisciplinary Forum, Disasters and the Role of Health Professionals, October 25, 2010

Missouri Information for Community Assessment (MICA) Training (for Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, August 3-4, 2010 Smokebusters Trainings

(Youth tobacco use prevention education and advocacy program trainings)

Sept. 22, 2010—Co HD Practitioners Oct. 21, 2010—School Health Educators

Written Communication Training (for Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, May 13, 2011

290 26 12 (+88 youth) 8 (+55 youth) 5 2009-2010 Claborn (co-chair)

Psychological First Aid

A public affairs event (jointly sponsored by Dept. of Nursing and The Center for Homeland Security); 8 CEUs available to First Responders and Care Givers October 17, 2009

Academic Year

MPH

Faculty Training Opportunity # of Participants Claborn

(co-chair)

Duitsman

CHHS Multidisciplinary Forum, Health and Happiness in Hard Times: Access, Affordability Action

(A college-wide forum open to the public discussing alternative methods of maintaining health and obtaining health care, October 26, 2009

Smokebusters Trainings

(Youth tobacco use prevention education and advocacy program trainings)

Sept. 30, 2009—Co HD Practitioners Feb. 24, 2010--School Health Educators

300

17 (+104 youth) 3 (+13 youth)

Faculty have been planning other workforce events that will, hopefully, take place beginning next academic year. Dr. Federman has been communicating with Taney County Health Department in Branson, MO about a “Software Applications and Data Sources in Public Health” workshop or

webinar series for the health department employees and other invited guests. This could be offered to other organizations as well.

Dr. Claborn has been working with the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Disaster Preparedness Coordinator (Ms. Yates), planning workshops to train public health workers to evaluate the post-disaster (post-flood) environments for vector-borne disease risk and to make essential decisions regarding surveillance and control of vectors in such situations. Dr. Claborn provided Ms. Yates (1) a statement of the problems (2) objectives and (3) expected competencies for workers who would attend the course, and she has submitted a proposal to CDC to fund this project.

3.3.d. List of other educational institutions or public health practice organizations, if any, with which the Program collaborates to offer continuing education.

As noted above, MPH faculty have and continue to collaborate with the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in offering continuing education/workforce development activities.

3.3.e. Assessment of the extent to which this criterion is met. This criterion is met.

Strengths

 The MPH faculty provide a variety of educational programs and presentations to public health and other health-related professionals as well as to students.

 The Program allows working professionals to take MPH courses as a non-degree seeking student and encourages such by offering all courses either in non-traditional formats. Challenges/Opportunities

 The Program has only offered formalized continuing education hours (CEUs) for one event in the past three years, thus should explore future opportunities through the Missouri State University’s Outreach program.

Criterion 4: Faculty, Staff and Students