141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

286850
Preparation for practice: Incorporating knowledge, skills, and values in public health law education (II)

Monday, November 4, 2013 : 4:50 PM - 5:10 PM

Kathleen Hoke, JD , Network for Public Health Law--Eastern Region, University of Maryland Carey School of Law, Baltimore, MD
By its nature, public health law is an interdisciplinary practice, yet public health law is often taught in disciplinary silos, with law and public health students taking separate courses at their respective schools. The Carnegie Report outlines a framework for enhancing legal education and preparing students for practice that includes core competencies in the areas of knowledge, skills, and values. Using the Carnegie framework, this panel is targeted to an audience of faculty who teach public health law in different disciplinary schools, practitioners who supervise students, and others involved with public health and legal education. It will examine innovative methods, benefits, and challenges of teaching public health law in an interdisciplinary manner. I will describe how students can learn public health law practice (skills) in a legal clinic and how students from other disciplines can be integrated into that practice. Hoke directs the Public Health Law Clinic at Maryland Carey Law; students in the Clinic provide technical legal assistance to state and local public health officials and legislators on public health policy. Through the Clinic, students learn how to draft sound public health policy (statutes, regulations, informal policy); to identify potential legal hurdles to passage, implementation and enforcement; and to communicate effectively across disciplines. Students also learn the importance of identifying an evidence base for policy. Hoke will explain how the Clinic operates, limitations on activities particularly for those at public institutions, and how to build collaborations across disciplines, including MPH and MSW programs.

Learning Areas:
Other professions or practice related to public health
Public health or related education
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
Describe how a law school clinic can be used to teach law students the practice of public health law Explain how a law school clinic can integrate students from other disciplines (i.e. public health, social work, medical, nursing) in the development of public health policy Identify the benefits to the public health community benefits from lawyers trained in public health practice during law school

Keywords: Public Health Education, Law

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been teaching public health law clinic at the University of Maryland School of Law for eleven years. I have developed a curriculum for law students and designed projects to incorporate students from other discplines. I have presented at the Health Law Teachers Conference on the subject and am working with colleagues in the Network for Public Health Law to develop public health law clinics in other law schools.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

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.