Lifelong Learning for a Well Prepared Public Health Workforce
Public Deposited- Last Modified
- January 10, 2020
- Creator
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Harrison, Lisa Macon
- Affiliation: Gillings School of Global Public Health, Public Health Leadership Program
- Abstract
- The terms workforce development, learning organization, and academic health deparlment are all components of a lifelong learning approach for public health and refer to a similar overarching concept: creating an environment or an ethos that prioritizes learning, fosters a well prepared workforce, and seeks to achieve groups of people who work smarter, better, collaboratively, and efficiently. Lifelong learning refers to learning as a necessary and lifelong process due to a new intensity in knowledge, a growing technology base, and an ever-changing range of challenges faced by public health in the new millennium. Lifelong learning will be defined more extensively within this paper, and for purposes explored throughout, will be linked to public health preparedness. With the essential services of public health expanding to include preparedness and response, with the majority of public health workers across America becoming eligible for retirement in the next decade, with major shifts in our demographic make-up as a nation, with the population living longer and dealing with more chronic disease than ever before, and with a global purview becoming increasingly prominent, governmental public health systems must prepare for change at a pace more rapid and more encompassing than we have ever experienced. Learning quickly, learning differently as technology advances, and learning new things in the context of old systems can be challenging. We must attempt a cultural shift in how learning happens in local public health departments, and competency-based learning should be integrated into workplace experience. Every reference included for this paper focuses on bringing awareness to the fact that a competent, sustainable workforce is necessary to an effective public health system in America. Calling attention to an issue is one thing, but proposing opportunities for action is more challenging. Public health leaders pay attention to research, innovation, best practices, and real-world local health department examples of success. We must continue to fund and pursue these endeavors to determine if lifelong learning will really work in public health. Promoting lifelong learning among public health workers affects not only the workforce, but also allows for an entire organization to be well prepared and highly functioning. This paper will review who is doing the work of public health, how the focus of learning and training is not a 'onesize- fits-all' solution, and how we can address the health needs of the public in the context of preparedness better if we work smarter. One example of an academic health department model in North Carolina illustrates how health departments can become effective learning organizations and contribute to a culture of lifelong learning.
- Date of publication
- April 2006
- DOI
- Resource type
- Rights statement
- In Copyright
- Note
- Paper type: Research or research design
- Track: HC&P
- Advisor
- Williamson, William
- Degree
- Master of Public Health
- Degree granting institution
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Graduation year
- 2006
- Language
- Deposit record
- 564d1737-ca9b-4211-9c3e-c1926665c3df
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This work has no parents.