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Abstract #152157

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J. Jackson Barnette, PhD, Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 140J Ryals Public Health Building, 1665 University Blvd., Birmingham, AL 35294-0022, 205-934-7781, barnette@uab.edu, Judith G. Calhoun, PhD, MBA, MA, School of Public Health, Health Management & Policy, University of Michigan, 109. S. Observatory, M3525, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, James Ranger-Moore, PhD, Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, P.O. Box 245211, 1295 N. Martin Ave., Tucson, AZ 85724, Melvin Moeschberger, PhD, Division of Biostatistics, Ohio State University, 320 West 10th Avenue, B-104 Starling Loving Hall, Columbus, OH 43210, Getachew Dagne, PhD, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Florida, 2113 MDC-56, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Blvd, Tampa, FL 33612, Alan Melnick, MD, MPH, Family Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, 5181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd, Portland, OR 97239, Marcia A. Testa, MPH PhD, Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, and Kalpana Ramiah, MPH, MSc, CHES, ASPH, 1101 15th Street, Washington, DC 20005.

The MPH Core Competency Project was initiated in 2004, directed by staff and consultants of the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH). The purpose of the project was to identify a set of competencies that every MPH graduate should possess in the five core disciplines, plus public health biology, and a set of interdisciplinary cross-cutting areas. One of the core areas was biostatistics. The author of this paper chaired the Biostatistics Competency Workgroup, made up of academicians and practitioners, and many members of the APHA Statistics Section served on one of the workgroups in the three-round Delphi process used to focus the competencies. The process used for the biostatistics competencies involved the collection of candidate competencies from workgroup members. The chair and one of the workgroup members organized the set of candidate competencies into a set of 30 competencies. These were submitted for the first round of the Delphi where workgroup members were asked to rate each competency as accept, accept with changes, reject, or consider an alternative. Fourteen competencies remained after the first round and these were winnowed down to nine after the third round. After review by a second workgroup, one additional one was added resulting in the final group of ten competencies. This paper reports on the process used, workgroup membership, the final set of ten biostatistics competencies, and the likely use of these competencies in curriculum development, CEPH accreditation, and inclusion in the certification test being developed by the National Board of Public Health Examiners.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will understand the purposes and processes used to identify the MPH course competencies, with a focus on development of the biostatistics competencies
• Participants will learn the set of final ten biostatistics core competencies that all MPH graduates should possess
• Participants will learn about plans for the use of the competencies in MPH curricula, CEPH accreditation, and the NBPHE use of the competencies in the certification exam to be available in summer 2008

Keywords: Biostatistics, Certification

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

• Audio (mp3) recording
• Slides (pdf) or Handout