Does an MPH Degree Mean You are Ready to Take on Trade and Economic Globalization?

In 2003, the Institute of Medicine published a report entitled “Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century.” Among other issues, the report suggested that the Public Health profession was not adequately training its future professionals to address challenges presented by economic globalization, including trade, inequitable economic growth, distribution of health-harming products, food security issues and others. This research project examines how Schools of Public Health (SPHs) have responded to this charge. A mixed method approach combines interviews with SPH faculty and content analysis of curricular materials from a sample of top accredited SPHs, along with a review of the policies of the Association of Schools of Public Health and the Council on Education for Public Health. This project aims to understand the extent to which future Public Health professionals are being prepared with both the knowledge and skills to help shape the future policies of economic globalization, including trade and lending policies. The data highlights barriers existing within the profession to addressing these issues as well as potential opportunities for mobilizing the profession to more powerfully influence trade and economic globalization. This presentation will present examples of programs which have successfully infused their curricula with skilled preparation around issues of trade and globalization, and will offer suggestions for expanding such models broadly within Public Health.