A model for training public health workers in health policy: the Nebraska Health Policy Academy

There is growing recognition that health goals are more likely to be achieved and sustained if programs are complemented by appropriate changes in the policies, systems, and environments that shape their communities. However, the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to create and implement policy...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Preventing chronic disease 2014-05, Vol.11, p.E82, Article 140108
Main Authors: Brandert, Kathleen, McCarthy, Claudine, Grimm, Brandon, Svoboda, Colleen, Palm, David, Stimpson, Jim P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academies and Institutes - organization & administration
Capacity Building
Community-Institutional Relations
Competency-Based Education - methods
Curriculum
Health Personnel
Health Policy
Humans
Local Government
Nebraska
Pilot Projects
Public Health - education
Public Health Practice - standards
Public Policy
Staff Development
State Government
Tools and Techniques
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:There is growing recognition that health goals are more likely to be achieved and sustained if programs are complemented by appropriate changes in the policies, systems, and environments that shape their communities. However, the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to create and implement policy are among the major needs identified by practitioners at both the state and local levels. This article describes the structure and content of the Nebraska Health Policy Academy (the Academy), a 9-month program developed to meet the demand for this training. The Academy is a competency-based training program that aims to increase the capacity of Nebraska's state and local public health staff and their community partners to use public health policy and law as a public health tool. Our initiative allows for participation across a large, sparsely populated state; is grounded in adult learning theory; introduces the key principles and practices of policy, systems, and environmental change; and is offered free of charge to the state's public health workforce. Challenges and lessons learned when offering workforce development on public health policy efforts are discussed.
ISSN:1545-1151
1545-1151
DOI:10.5888/pcd11.140108