Comprehensive Paper Incorporating Masters in Public Health Core - Admission/Application Essay Example

Comprehensive Paper Incorporating Masters in Public Health Core and Concentration-Area Competencies Comprehensive PaperIncorporating Masters in Public Health Core and Concentration-Area Competencies Introduction Competencies are an illustration of outcome-based education. This necessitates the need for every education program to know the competencies it requires from its students, and develop a curriculum that addresses the competencies. Competencies in Masters in Public Health are aimed at improving the performance of individuals, enhancing communication, and coordination in the program, and enhancing innovation and leadership among the students (Weist et al., 2008). This comprehensive aims at delineating the core competencies and the overall competencies in Masters in Public Health. Core competencies Biostatistics Biostatistics as the name suggests entails incorporating statistics into biology. Statistics is majorly associated with calculations and figures, while biology entails anything the study of anything that is living. Biostatistics entails the use of statistics to represent public health problems. Biostatistics is a core competence in research since it presents public health problems in figures that are easy to interpret and understand. As a core competent in Masters in Public Health, Biostatistics plays a significant role in research. It represents evidenced based research a component essential in health. Through this, the public health sector is able to plan for intervention or mitigation measures based on the findings (Weist et al., 2008). Under Masters in Public Health, Biostatistics includes the use of measures in analysis. It entails the use of statistical aspects to solve public health dilemmas. Areas in which biostatistics has been used in public health is in evaluating the use of technology in public health. This is used to relate its effectiveness and the risks it poses to individuals. Consequently, biostatistics can be used to quantify public health problems and hence play an important role in the decision making process of public health issues (Weist et al., 2008). Biostatistics is evident in my fieldwork experience whose aim was to prevent heart disease and stroke. This is since in the assessment biostatistics helped me in the identification of intended target audience. It is by using statistics that I was able to evaluate the community that was aware of the risks of heart disease and stroke. Consequently, biostatistics helped me relate my finding with previous studies done so that I could come up with recommendations to be implemented to prevent heart disease and stroke (Weist et al., 2008). Environmental Health Science As a core competent in Masters in Public Health, environmental health science entails developing a relationship between the environment and its influences the health of individuals and the community. It has its genesis from the hypothesis that the environment is responsible for 25-40% of illnesses in the population. The main goal of environmental health science is to reduce the disease burden of human diseases, by devising strategies aimed at understanding the environment and its contributions to the progression of diseases (Weist et al., 2008). Environmental health science as a disciple in Masters in Public Health focuses on the impact of the Biology, physical, and chemical agent to the individual. It aims at evaluating how these factors both in the workplace and in the community, lead to disease acquisition and progression among individuals. It is aimed at examining how the environmental risk factors can be manipulated and controlled. Environmental health science in collaboration with the occupation health and epidemiology disciplines, come up with policies that limit the risk factors in the environment that lead to diseases (Weist et al., 2008). Researches in environmental health science have aimed at adopting prevention strategies, safety guidelines, and even treatment strategies for disease acquired secondary to exposure to the environment. With particular reference to my field experience, environmental health science is evident in my quest for healthier lifestyle for the audience. This is since lifestyle is made up of environmental factors that an individual is exposed to or engages in. Through lifestyle change, prevention of heart disease and stroke can effectively be achieved. An environmental initiative was evident in my quest for involvement of physical activity among the audience as a mitigation measure to preventing heart disease and stroke. Consequently, offering the community information regarding health risks and prevention tips is an environmental health science initiative (Weist et al., 2008). Epidemiology Epidemiology is the bulwark of the public health discipline. This makes it a core competent area of Masters in Public Health. Epidemiology is defined by the World health organization as the study of the distribution and determination of health related states, and the application of the study to control diseases. Epidemiology entails the knowledge of two aspects: incidence and prevalence. The former is the new occurrence of a disease while the latter entails the cumulated occurrence of a disease at a given point in time. Epidemiology works in close collaboration with other disciplines: biostatistics, exposure assessment, social screening, and biology (Weist et al., 2008). As a core competence in public health, epidemiology is essential in carrying out public health research activities. To begin with, epidemiology is relevant in the surveillance and description of disease outbreaks. This is since it gives an illustration of the incidence and prevalence of the disease outbreak. Consequently, epidemiology entails screening, and analytical studies since it is through screening that results can be interpreted. In addition, epidemiology entails designing studies, collecting data, statistically analyzing data, interpreting the findings, and disseminating the results obtained (Weist et al., 2008). Epidemiology as a core competent in public health is evidently portrayed in my fieldwork experience. Firstly, the health assessment was aimed at identifying the prevalence of the community that was uninformed about the risks of heart disease and stroke, and hence come up with the target audience. Secondly, encouraging the target audience to participate in health assessment to receive daily support and prevent heart disease and stroke is an epidemiology initiative. Consequently, issuing handouts to the community members enlightening them on ways that they can prevent heart disease and stroke was an epidemiology initiative (Weist et al., 2008). Health Policy and Management Health policy and management is another important core competence of Masters in Public Health. Management entails getting things done through other people. It also portrays the ability of an individual to efficiently and effectively utilize the available resources: minute, money, labor, machinery, and methods. Decision makers and opinion holders as pertains to the context of health issues implement policies. While pursuing Masters in Public Health, health policy and management equips an individual to with the knowledge to comprehend and come up with strategies aimed at improving the health sector. The discipline is also aims at achieving skills to implement the strategies adopted (Weist et al., 2008). Health policy and management is aimed at ensuring that students pursuing Masters in Public Health and in a position to competently address the changing health issues. It prepares the students for a dynamic health sector and enables them to come up with mitigation measures to combat the challenges. The public health sector aims at enhancing the delivery of safe health care services, making the services more efficient, eliminating disparities in healthcare, and expanding the insurance coverage (Weist et al., 2008). Consequently, the health policy and management core competence of public health is aimed at equipping their students with critical thinking skills. This enhances the problem solving techniques of their students once in leadership positions by giving them an opportunity to interact with public health policy makers. I was able to portray my health policy and management skills in my field work (Weist et al., 2008). To begin with, I assisted the community educators to brainstorm and develop seminar topics that were aimed at making the audience make informed decisions. Additionally, I enabled the community speakers educate the less informed and those at risk of heart disease and stroke. I also encouraged the community to participate in The Start! Heart Walk program aimed at promoting physical activity and heart healthy living (Weist et al., 2008). I also spearheaded the Go Red for Women campaign aimed at raising awareness among women regarding heart disease and stroke. I also ensured that the community members had access to nutritionist. Subsequently, I garnered sponsorship contributions to help raise awareness of heart disease and stroke, and encourage donations for The Start! Heart Walk and the Go Red campaign (Weist et al., 2008). Social and Behavioral Science Social and behavioral science is another competent of Masters in Public Health that deals with the society (Community) and how their behaviors influence their health status. This discipline deals with societal issues that are majorly not addressed by the community as they are related to taboos or discrete maters. These issues involve violence, poverty, sexuality, global warming, and divorce (Weist et al., 2008). This competent of Masters in Public Health engages students in the field and evaluates their ability to integrate effectively with the community. The tutors aim at assessing if besides class work; the students are able to address the issue they read in class in their natural setting. It addresses the causes of social inequalities and gives the students an avenue to analyze and formulate public health policies (Weist et al., 2008). My fieldwork evidently displayed the social, behavioral science competent since the setting was in the community, and I aimed at preventing heart disease and stroke among community members through education and campaign. Subsequently, I utilized the community educators and speakers in my initiative. I was able to address the inequalities that predispose them to heart disease and stroke, by emphasizing on healthy lifestyle through exercise, education, and counseling with the help of nutritionist. I was able to address the behavior of lack of exercise and lack of knowledge in my fieldwork experience (Weist et al., 2008). Population and Family Health World Health Organization defines health as the state of complete physical, mental, and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. In this context, Masters in Public Health addresses the family and the population holistically, by reviewing their mental, social, spiritual, psychological, and emotional factors that may be contributing to their current state of health (Weist et al., 2008). The family is single out since being the unit of the population, their health translates to the population at large. This discipline enables the public health students to address the felt and neglected needs of the family like adolescent and reproductive health issues. It also necessitates the importance of the students incorporating the human rights perspective that is aims to enhancing freedom and equality of all human beings. The population and family discipline gives the students a humanitarian response to issues affecting health (Weist et al., 2008). Population and family health discipline was competently addressed in my fieldwork as it aimed at educating the community members on how to prevent heart disease and stroke. This was emphasized by the incorporation of physical exercise, nutritionist, and health assessment strategies. Consequently, there was a campaign specifically addressing the women regarding heart disease and stroke (Weist et al., 2008). Overall competencies Communication and Informatics In the field of public health, communication and informatics refers to the application of technology and information science to the practice of public health. For public health practices to be effective, it is important that timely, authoritative and accurate information to be obtained from a wide variety of sources. The use of information technology and other forms of computerized information is vital in the practice of public health. For effective information systems to be developed there needs to be a clear understanding of the (PHI) public health informatics (Weist et al., 2008). In the course of my fieldwork, I was presented with several opportunities to make use of communication and informatics. I had to make practical use and application of the knowledge that I had gathered in my class work as well as in other areas. Through the knowledge of communication and informatics, I was able to contribute to the surveillance of heart diseases and conditions. In the American Heart Association, there is a continuous monitoring for changes in the occurrence of heart diseases and conditions. This monitoring and analysis helps the Association to detect when there are changes in the pattern and occurrence of the heart conditions. The ability to identify changes in occurrence and prevalence of health conditions is important as it helps in the identification of foreign factors in the change, and helps in the control of the condition (Weist et al., 2008). With information health systems, there is a marked improvement in the effectiveness and efficiency of the delivery of public health care. The promotion of public health is also done in a more efficient manner using information technology. Using information technology, information regarding how to prevent conditions and diseases can be generated and disbursed to the public. Campaigns and activities that are geared towards the eradication, prevention, and control of conditions can also be better planned and coordinated with the use of information technology. For the American Heart Association, such activities that were planned and coordinated during my practicum included the organization of ‘Heart runs’ and fundraisers geared towards raising of funds to aid in the research into heart conditions (Weist et al., 2008). The main area of concentration during my practical was the community that is unaware of the risks, causes, and prevention of heart conditions. This made it very necessary to make use of information technology to develop information that was easy to understand yet comprehensive enough to deal with the various aspects that are involved in the prevention and management of heart conditions. The use of information technology was vital as it enabled all the vulnerable points in the prevention and management of heart conditions to be addressed. The use of appropriate channels of communication made this process cost effective and one that reached a wider target audience (Weist et al., 2008). The use of new and emerging media is also an important part in communication and informatics in public health. The new and emerging media include social media such as twitter and Facebook. Other forms of new media include YouTube. The promotion of the Go Red For Women campaign was mostly done through the use of social media. This way, I was able to pass the message from the American Heart Association to the public. The embracing of the use of social media is an important part of communication in public health as a majority of people has embraced social media and relies on it as a source of information (Weist et al., 2008). Diversity and Culture Diversity and culture is one of the competency domains in public health. This is the ability to interact with people from diverse communities and different backgrounds to reach the desired health outcome. In my case, the desired outcome was a public that was well informed on the risks of heart conditions and stroke. The informed community would have the knowledge on the factors that contribute to the heart conditions and stroke and therefore know how to protect themselves (Weist et al., 2008). In the course of my field experience, I was able to apply the principles of community based participatory research to come up with ways through which the health in the diverse Miami Dade County could be improved. After conducting extensive community based participatory research, I was able to identify that the best way through which the community could be educated on the risks of heart diseases or conditions and stroke was through the organization of seminars. Through the seminars, the community was educated on the causes and triggers of hearth conditions and stroke. They were also educated on the importance and the benefits of maintaining a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle (Weist et al., 2008). Another avenue of interacting with the diverse community was by attending the community fairs that were organized and held throughout the Miami-Dade County. This is because the fairs bring together people from the different and diverse backgrounds and therefore provides an opportunity to interact with the people of the different backgrounds (Weist et al., 2008). With careful consideration of the diverse backgrounds that the different people come from, I was able to encourage people to take part in the different activities organized with the view of encouraging a healthier lifestyle. These activities include The Start! Heart Walk, a 5 kilometer run held to promote physical activity within the community. The run is one of the activities that is widely accepted by the diverse community. It is important to be able to come up with the appropriate measures to control heart diseases, and the measures must be acceptable to a diverse community. In the dissemination of information, it is important to be sensitive to the cultural differences and diversity. This was important in building content for the various seminars (Weist et al., 2008). The change in the composition of the population living around made it necessary for me to consider the culturally diverse needs of the community in planning the various educational campaigns that I needed to implement. It was also important to consider the diversity of the community as it has been shown that people of different communities and origins are affected are affected differently by heart conditions and stroke. This means that each population segment within the community has different needs that should all be addressed appropriately (Weist et al., 2008). Leadership In public health, it is important to show leadership. This includes the collaborative leadership which is an inclusive style of leadership where all the people that would be affected by a certain decision or a certain change are made part of the decision or of the change process. This enabled me to come up with various innovative projects that were geared towards the eradication of heart problems and stroke. The leadership training that I had received enabled me to encourage community participation in the various seminars that I took part in organizing and facilitating. It also gave me the ability to assess the needs of the community (which I found to be a need to be educated on the risk of heart conditions and stroke) and come up with ways with which the needs can be addressed (Weist et al., 2008). Through working with the different partners, the leadership training that I had received prior to my field experience enabled me to confront the challenge that existed in the provision of information regarding stroke and heart condition. It also enabled me to use the resources that were allocated to me in an appropriate manner that enabled me to perform my duties competently. The capacity to work effectively also came in handy in the course of my field experience as it helped perform the various tasks that were required. It also helped me in the planning and mobilization of people to take part in the different activities, which include the Go Red for Women Campaign. The mobilization of people will help raise more funds for the causes (Weist et al., 2008). Leadership in public health is also important as it helps one to set goals that are achievable, and through partnership with other members of the team work towards the achievement of that goal. The goal was to educate people on the risk of heart diseases and by working with different members of the American Heart Association; I was able to achieve this goal with considerable success (Weist et al., 2008). Professionalism Professionalism refers to the conduct and quality that marks or characterizes a given profession. Public health workers are expected to consistently display behavior that is professional. The public health profession requires one to gain various skills and competencies. It also requires one to appropriately apply the knowledge and technical skills that have been gained in the service of the community. Professionalism in public health has to do with the ability to make ethical choices and consider the impact that those choices will have on the community (Weist et al., 2008). In the course of my field experience, I was able to apply the principles of the ethical analysis. This enabled me to carry out the work and responsibility of educating people about heart problems in a way that respected the basic human rights. In coming up with the information that was to be distributed to the public in the course of educating them, I had to promote and maintain a high standard of integrity, both personal integrity and the integrity of the organization (American Heart Association). I also had to develop the various seminars and educational programs bearing in mind the cost of the educational opportunities and the benefit that it would bring to the society. Professionalism enabled me to remain focused on the achievement of education for all those in the community who were unaware of the causes and the risk factors that are associated with the heart conditions (Weist et al., 2008). Public Health Biology Public health biology serves to educate on the relevant biological processes that are at work in and that influence the population’s health. Public health biology also helps in the description of the influence or the effect of the environment that one is living in on the behavioral health and human physiology. It also helps one to relate the changes that occur in a person because of lifestyle choices. In addition, the interaction between genetics, the environment, and lifestyle plays an important part in maintaining good health within the population (Weist et al., 2008). During the course of my practicum, I was able to educate the community on the need to maintain a healthy lifestyle in order to avoid heart diseases. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle includes not smoking and avoiding excessive consumption of alcohol. A healthy lifestyle also involves maintaining a balanced diet and ensuring that one regularly exercises. As a way to get people to exercise, I encouraged people to take part in the he Start! Heart Walk, which aims to raise funds while at the same time encouraging people to take part in physical fitness practices. The ability to integrate the general biological and molecular concepts in the practice of public health was also important in developing the content for the various seminars and conferences that I organized. It was also important in helping to develop content for the informational pamphlets that were distributed to the public (Weist et al., 2008). Program Planning Program planning can be defined as the ability to plan on how strategies that are aimed at improving the community health cam ne designed, implemented and evaluated (Weist et al., 2008). During the field experience, I was able to come up with an in depth description of the social, environmental, and economic factors that contributed to the occurrence of the heart condition in the community. I was also able to develop the appropriate content that would be used in seminars and trainings to educate people on heart conditions. It is important for one to have the ability to differentiate between goals, objectives, activities to be carried out, and the outcomes. This was especially important in the preparation of the seminars and other methods of educating the public on heart conditions. It was also important in preparing the budget that would facilitate the different activities that had to be carried out in the process of educating the public. It was also important in prioritizing the different tasks that had to be carried out (Weist et al., 2008). Systems Thinking Systems thinking in public health are the ability to recognize the different system level properties that are because of dynamic interactions among the social and human systems and how they influence the relationships among the different members of the society (Weist et al., 2008). In practice, this is important as it helps in explaining how the different models in public health can be developed and tested. Systems thinking is important as it provides a means to explain how the different individuals, organizations, social networks, and communities can be viewed as a system for the purposes of analyzing health problems. It also helps in the analyzing the effects that different policies have on the public health. This was applicable in my field experienced as it helped in coming up with a comprehensive and inclusive way of educating the general public on heart conditions. It also helped in the analysis of the impact that the policies that the government has put in place regarding prevention and treatment of heart conditions were having on the general population, and on the education on heart and stroke matters (Weist et al., 2008). Conclusion The competencies in public health are put in place so that they can serve as a guide for the public health workers who intend to improve the accountability and quality of the public health education. This therefore means that it is necessary for the educational programs that are responsible for educating public health workers to address the competencies. The competencies provide an avenue to ensure that those who are dealing with public health are well equipped to handle the demands of the profession. My field experience with the American Heart Association provided me an opportunity to gain practical experience working within the competency model. It also provided me an opportunity to put into practice the various concepts that I had learnt in the classroom setting. Through the practical application of the core competencies I was able to achieve the goals that I had set out to achieve which is to educate a culturally diverse community that was uniformed on the dangers and risk factors for heart diseases and conditions and stroke. Reference Weist, E., Calhoun, J., Ramiah, K., and Shortell, S., (2008). “Development of a Core Competency model for the Master of Public health Degree” In Framing Health Matters Peer reviewed, American Journal of Public health, 98 (9), 1598-1607. Read More