Training Future Health Practitioners

Suzanne F. Jackson, Lindsey Thompson, Aaron Thompson, Rachel Zulla

Dalla Lana School of Public HealthCPHA May 28, 2014

BackgroundMultidisciplinary Curriculum Review Task Force set

competencies in common for all studentsCore course for ALL incoming Masters and PhD students

to DLSPH, for streams in:EpidemiologyBiostatisticsHealth promotionCommunity NutritionOccupational and Environmental HealthCommunity MedicineMHScCH programsPhD programs in Epi, Soc & Behav Sci, Biostats+ others (e.g. Public Health Dentistry)

Competencies to be AddressedKnowledge Competencies:

Knowledge of Canada’s public health systemRecognize role of SDOH in health & well-beingCommunicate effectively using current

technologyApply approaches suited to diverse populations

“Softer” Process Competencies:Team-building, conflict mgmt, group facilitationCollaborative problem-solvingAppreciate strengths of different disciplinesSet priorities within limits of resources

Design Elements of Course Knowledge/Content Components:

Short lectures (1 hr) with longer workshops (2 hr)On-line PHAC public health courseFocus on case study in each team to apply concepts

Process Learning Components:Small group work in self-led inter-disciplinary teamsSkills-building workshopsIndividual Reflection papers on interdisciplinary

workMasters students mixed, PhD students in 1 groupPoster & workshop re communication skills

Case Studies - Content7 case studies prepared on different issuesLocated in real communities in Canada with

real dataIn 4 sessions, students tasked to:

identify nature of the issue and the community, identify the root causes, propose possible solutions.

3 group reports on above tasks + poster presentation

Case Studies - ProcessInterdisciplinary groups of 10-15 students

created Required to rotate the roles of moderator,

time-keeper, minute-taker, recorder at each session

Given questions to ask from different streams or “disciplines” (students do not know their public health discipline yet)

Individual reflection papers re interdisciplinary work

Objectives of Case StudiesIdentify the root causes (social, political,

historical, etc.) of a health issue; Unpack the health issue using an

interdisciplinary perspective; Negotiate the dynamics of working with

diverse disciplines to set health priorities for a community;

Co-create resolutions that fit the community’s context;

Experiment with types of research and data used to support solutions.

Evaluation MethodsHard copy evaluations for all students:

At end of first weekIn December, at end of last case study sessionAt end of last day in FebruaryAfter each skills development workshop

Quantitative analysis and themes for qualitative answers

170 students (13 PhD)

Process Results - 1158/170 responded to Sept evaluation (93%)

Very enthusiastic response to speakers & workshops with only 1 session receiving score <4 out of 5.

Students liked the breadth of topics covered, engaging speakers, Last Straw game, small group work

Students did not like long hours, jam-packed sessions, feeling rushed

140/157 Masters re Dec eval re case studies (89%)3.4-3.9 mean scores re quality & usefulness of case

study small group work2.9-3 lowest scores for relevance to field of study

Process Results - 210/13 PhD students responded re case

studies (77%)Scores 2.2 – 3.6 re usefulness and quality of

case study work in small groupsHighest scores for respect within team and

workload distribution (>4) and for opportunity to build interdisciplinary relationships (3.8)

103/170 students answered Feb eval (60%)Usefulness & quality of speakers scored 2.6 –

4.1

Knowledge ResultsCompetency Results

Knowledge of Canada’s public health system

100% students completed PHAC on-line course(no assessment of knowledge)- Overall rating of usefulness of course – 3.1

Recognize role of SDOH in health & well-being

All case study group reports did a reasonable to excellent job of identifying root causes of health issues (poor job of ident root causes in final eval)

Communicate effectively using current technology

All posters were well designed, in colour, clear presentation of results-One game + one video poster as radio interview- No “new” social media required

Apply approaches suited to diverse populations

-Diverse populations addressed in each case-In final reports and posters, students demonstrated ability to identify & address inequities

Soft Skills ResultsCompetency Results

Team-building, conflict mgmt, group facilitation

-98% students took the 2 courses-Reflection papers demonstrated understanding of group process

Collaborative problem-solving

-Groups produced required products but some students reported doing more work than others-High score among PhD students for workload distribution (<4)

Appreciate strengths of different disciplines

- Opportunity to build interdisciplinary relationships valued by PhD students (3.8) - Overall good rating for exposure to different public health disciplines (3.6)

Set priorities within limits of resources

- Each team was able to propose a solution – not all were the best use of resources

Lessons LearnedContent aspects of course were very goodProcess aspects need improvement:

15 people in one group too big for group work – need to be in smaller groups of 6-8 students

Students did not always “see” their discipline in the case study (e.g. OEH, biostats)

Role of mentors is helpful in case study workTiming of professional skills workshops did not

work out well for some groupsPhD students have different competency

needs