Connecting public health and planning professionals in Ontario: The need for an education module

A lack of knowledge and understanding exists between public health and planning professionals in Ontario regarding each other's mandate, legislation, and decision-making process. As a result, a clear need exists to better educate public health and planning professionals in order to more effectively influence policy decisions related to the health and the built environment. The purpose of the project is to increase knowledge among public health unit staff and OPPI planners involved in the land use planning process through the development of a Public Health and Planning 101 education module to help inform policy decisions related to health and the built environment in the Ontario. Survey participants were asked of their past experience working in the built environment and health, previous collaborations and barriers to partnering with others beyond their respective fields, and resource development. Two separate surveys were completed by 304 public health professionals and 301 planning professionals in early 2012. The majority of public health professionals (95.4%) and planners (85.7%) agreed that both professions should be working together on the built environment. Both professions identified a lack of understanding each other's mandates and limited human resources as barriers to collaboration. In Phase 1, the survey findings, external stakeholder interviews, and environmental scan support the development of a Public Health and Planning 101 education module. Future Phases of the project will involve education module development, knowledge translation and dissemination, pilot testing, implementation and evaluation of the educational resource.