Health Education & Community Colleges:
Advancing the Workforce
Presentation to
League for Innovation for Community Colleges
M. Elaine Auld, MPH, MCHES
CEO, Society for Public Health Education
David Lohrmann, PhD, MCHES
Professor and Chair of the Department of Applied Science, Indiana University School of Public
Health, Bloomington, IN
Today’s Speakers
• Elaine Auld, MPH, MCHES Chief Executive Officer,
Society for Public Health Education
• David Lohrmann, PhD,
MCHES
Professor and Chair of the Department of Applied
Today’s Objectives
By the end of the presentation, participants will be able
to:
• Describe SOPHE’s mission and activities in relation to
community colleges.
• Discuss anticipated demand for health education specialists
due to the Affordable Care Act.
• Describe three prototype health education courses and
course content developed for community colleges.
• Identify how SOPHE may be a resource to community colleges
SOPHE
FOUNDED
1950
MISSION
To provide global leadership to the profession of
health education and health promotion and to
promote the health of society.
SOPHE Overview
SOPHE’s nearly 4,000 national, international and
chapter members work in various public and private
organizations:
– PreK-12 schools – Colleges/Universities – Worksites – Medical/Health Care – Community Organizations– Federal/State/Local Health Departments
– International Organizations
SOPHE Leadership
•
Governed by 20-member Board of Trustees elected
by membership
•
House of Delegates – 21 SOPHE chapters covering >
30 states/regions, Western Canada, Northern Mexico
•
Working Infrastructure
–
Committees
–
14 Communities of Practice
SOPHE Community Colleges Project
•
12/13 - Task Force chaired by David Lohrmann, PhD,
Indiana University School of Public Health
•
12/13-2/14 - Developed 3 health education courses
based on CHES competencies
•
3/14 - SOPHE board approved courses
•
11/14 – SOPHE board endorses next phases of
involvement in implementing report
•
12/14 - Convene Community Colleges Task Force 2
•
12/14-4/15 – Sponsor Webinar Series & Annl Mtg
ACA Window of Opportunity
New Orientation
• Transformation from “sick” care to “wellness” focused orientation
Policy change
• 1. Insurance/payer reform • 2. System or delivery reform
Care & Community
Linkages
• Accountable Care Organizations, Patient Centered Medical Homes • Community Transformation Grants, State Innovation Models
Achieving ACA Goals
•
Size, composition, distribution and skills of health
workforce will determine ACA success.
•
With ACA implementation, demand for Health
Education Specialists will increase:
–
Demand for health educators to increase by more
than 21%, almost twice as fast as all other
occupations (11%).
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook,
Dept of Labor SOC Definition (21-1094)
• Provide and manage health education programs that help
individuals, families, and their communities maximize and maintain healthy lifestyles.
• Collect and analyze data to identify community needs prior to
planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating programs designed to encourage healthy lifestyles, policies, and
environments.
• May serve as resource to assist individuals, other health
professionals, or the community, and may administer fiscal resources for health education programs.
Health Education Specialists’
Competencies
1. Assess Needs, Assets,
Capacity
2. Plan Health Education
3. Implement Health
Education
4. Conduct Evaluation &
Research
5. Administer & Manage
Health Education
6. Serve as a Resource Person
7. Communicate & Advocate
Individual
Community
Health Education Certification
System
•
Administered by National Commission for
Health Education Credentialing, Inc – 1988
–
Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES)
–
Master Certified Health Education Specialist
(MCHES)
•
~12,000 CHES/MCHES
•
Some states CHES/MCHES required, preferred
in hiring
•
CHES/MCHES linked to some disease specific
Roles of the Health
Educator
The health
Health Education Courses for
Community Colleges
Context
•
Association of Schools and Programs in Public
Health’s (ASPPH) Framing the Future Community
Colleges and Public Health Project
– ASPPH developing prototype curricular frameworks for
public health generalists initiative in community colleges
– SOPHE asked to collaborate in order to insure inclusion of
ASPPH Parameters
• Already designed Public Health Generalist Associate degree
curriculum* intended to:
– Assure that associate degree graduates develop basic skills and knowledge consistent with the Critical Component Elements of an Undergraduate Major in Public Health OR
– Prepare associate degree graduates for public health and related programs at the bachelor's degree level.
– Encourage students to complete bachelor's degree programs in the health field including public health generalist, health
education, health administration, and environmental health programs.
ASPPH Public Health Generalist Curriculum*
•
Associate degree program-
– 60 semester hour
– 24 to 30 semester hours of subject area content
•
Core (12 credits)
– Human Biology- 3 semester hours as part of general education requirements
– Overview of Public Health- 3 semester hours – Health Communications- 3 semester hours
– Evidence-based Thinking in Health (based on AAC&U's Scientific Thinking and Integrative Reasoning Skills- STIRS)-3 semester
hours
ASPPH Public Health Generalist Curriculum*
• Required Professional Courses (15-18 credits)
– Health Education- 3 semester hours
– Health Administration- 3 semester hours – Environmental Health- 3 semester hours
– Nine credit hours in one of these three disciplines may be substituted
if the three coordinated courses are endorsed by the corresponding academic association for transfer to a bachelor's degree in their discipline
• Experiential Learning (3 cr.—possible to “double dip”)
– Experiential learning -3 semester hours including curricula on working with individuals and communities
• Electives (up to 6 credits)
ASPPH Request to SOPHE
• By, early March 2014, propose a three course sequence of 3
credit health education courses (9 credits total) that includes:
– an introductory survey course PLUS
– two additional health education professional courses.
• Together, three courses constitute the health education
concentration of the Public Health Generalist degree program.
• Introductory health education course will be:
– required of all students completing other concentrations within the Public Health Generalist degree
– constitute the social/behavioral core course that is required in
SOPHE Assumptions
•
Students will have completed an “Overview of Public
Health” course and, possibly, a personal health course
prior to or along with the introductory course in health
education.
•
Students will also complete courses in Health
Administration and Environmental Health as well as a
course in Health Communication
•
Students will complete epidemiology, biostatistics and
advanced health education professional courses during
the final two years of their four-year degree program.*
SOPHE Process
•
Convened Community College Taskforce
•
Membership
– Volunteers already involved in
coordination/articulation agreements with community colleges
– Volunteers with general interest in the issue
– Appropriate SOPHE Board liaisons
•
Additional recruitment (emerged) expertise in
– Health Information (including librarians) – Service Learning
SOPHE Taskforce Process
• Use as the foundation for all courses, Eight Responsibilities and
Competencies of a Certified Health Education Specialist.
http://www.nchec.org/responsibilities-and-competencies
• Initially develop an introductory survey course by using as the primary resource, Health Promotion Programs: From Theory to
Practice by Fertman and Allensworth and other SOPHE
resources, including course outlines provided by members
• Determine the content outlines of the additional two courses by:
– Specifying CHES Responsibilities and Competencies to be addressed – Assuring that course content complements proposed required
course on Health Communications
SOPHE Taskforce Process (continued)
•
Step 1: Introduction to Health Education Course
(review of existing course syllabi and brainstorm)
– Main themes emerged
• Health education and health promotion – what is it and why is it important?
• A history of health education and health promotion. • Health Educator Careers & Ethics
• Overview of the major current health issues and high risk populations. (Diversity & Disparities)
• Introductory Health Theories & Models • The Literature of Health Education.
• Common methods for health education.
• What is the future of health education and promotion? • Special population & setting discussions.
SOPHE Taskforce Process (continued)
•
Step 2: Determine main themes of two additional
courses
– Survey of taskforce members re: CHES responsibilities and competencies
– Consensus themes:
• Accessing and analyzing health information
• Health Advocacy and Leadership (with experiential learning)
– Formed two additional sub-committees (recruited
SOPHE Course Outlines
Submitted to ASPPH
•
Introduction to Health Education
Mary I. Hawkins, Ph.D., CHES, Associate Professor Louisiana State University Shreveport
•
Accessing and Analyzing Health Information
Elaine R. Hicks, MSLIS, MPH, MCHES, Education/Health Literacy Librarian
Rudolph Matas Library of the Health Sciences
•
Public Health Advocacy & Leadership in Action
(“double dip” = experiential learning)
Who Should Teach
Health Education Courses?
SOPHE Instructor Qualifications
–
Minimum of master degrees in health education
and/or
–
Certified as an entry-level or advanced-level health
education specialist (CHES/MCHES)
–
Involve librarian to demonstrate use of library
SOPHE Planned Activities
•
Special supplement on Community Colleges:
SOPHE Journal, Pedagogy in Health Promotion,
Spring 2016
•
Dissemination through conferences, newsletters
– March 2016 League presentation - Chicago
