This paper describes a Community-Based Master’s Program that allows second year public health students to apply public health knowledge and skills to address a specific community health issue while developing public health practitioner skills. Supervised by a faculty chair and community preceptor, students participate 1 ½ days per week throughout the academic year in a structured learning experience linked to serving the community while completing a master’s project. Goals of the program include: 1) enhance knowledge in core public health disciplines; 2) develop public health practice skills; 3) develop research skills relevant to academic concentration; 4) address a community need to improve population health; and 5) promote human rights. Over the past four years, 85 students have completed projects in the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, grass-roots community agencies, health care organizations, and legal agencies. Formative evaluations indicate that community agencies have benefited from having students address important issues that “they never have had the time to do,” promote policy changes, affect changes in research methods, and build relationships among students, faculty and agency staff. Students benefited from community preceptors’ mentoring, improved practice skills and learning how to design and complete a comprehensive project. Drawing on representative student projects, the presentation will discuss strategies for developing a public health master’s program that integrates objectives of the community, the academic center and the student into a cohesive learning experience.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation, participants will be able to: 1) identify key curriculum components of a community-based masters program; 2) describe the importance of developing clearly defined outcomes that meet the expectations of community groups and academic institutions; 3) identify key strategies that enable the success of collaborative community-based programs; and 4) define evaluation strategies to measure effectiveness of community-academic collaborations.
Keywords: Collaboration, Training
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: MCP Hahnemann University School of Public Health
Philadelphia Department of Public Health
Grass Roots Community Organizations
Health Care Organizations
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.