Centre for Translational Research in Public Health

Tuesday 31st March 2009

Alyson Learmonth

Head of School of Public Health,

Director of Public Health Gateshead

North East Public Health Board

Policy

Com

missioning and delivery of

public health functions

Strategy Effector

Advisory & scrutinyR

egional Public H

ealth Delivery

(PC

Ts, LA

As etc)

Research &

Developm

entP

ublic Health C

entre of Research

Excellence P

HIN

E, P

HO

Social M

arketing Collaborative N

ELobbying functionsF

RE

SH

, OS

CA

, etc

Teaching &

learning, Workforce

planning,S

pecialist training

RDPH & Exec Directors of Public Health

RDPH team; PHNE Regional AdvisoryGroups

10 Themes

Conference of publichealth practitioners

Better Health, Fairer Health Structures

• Every contact a health improvement contact

• Every contract a health improvement contract

• All public sector services include health and wellbeing in their delivery

• Every neighbourhood includes public health in their plans

• Local policies and programmes include health impact assessment in decision making

What would success look like?

• All voluntary and community groups are engaged in health and wellbeing

• Every school, college, hospital, GP practice, university and workplace is a healthy setting

• All courses include health and wellbeing links and the academic sector is fully engaged

• Everyone interested in Public Health knows how to learn more

• Everyone working in Public Health feels confident, capable working to their maximum potential and acknowledged

educ

atio

n se

ctor

School of Public Health – What we do

Specialty

Training

Specialty Training Committee

To oversee the training of specialists who aim to be registered with the GMC or the UKPHR.

This encompasses those on the formal training scheme and those using a portfolio route.

Public health

workforce capacity building

To coordinate and lead the development of capacity to improve health and well being and reduce inequalities in health for the population of the north east in line with ‘Better Health, Fairer Health’

100% p

ub

lic health

roles

Teaching Public Health Network

Bring together education providers with the public sector workforce and workforce planners to increase capacity to improve health in its wider sense.

Level 9

Levels 1- 8

Building competencies

LEADERSHIPPARTNERSHIPSPOLICY &

STRATEGYSURVEILLANCEASSESSMENT OF EVIDENCE

HEALTH IMPROVEMENTPROTECTIONINTELLIGENCEQUALITYACADEMIC PUBLIC HEALTH

Health trainers

(Level 3)RSPH accredited

training

(Level 2)

Public health practitioners

(Level 5 and 7)

Leading for health

improvement and wellbeing

(Level 7, 8, 9)

Induction programme for NHS staff

• Theoretical base is still under construction!

Issues facing Practitioners developing new roles

Roles related to individual behaviour change

• ‘tiers’ from signposting to brief interventions (based on Prochaska and Diclemente’s cycle of change) to intermediate services but not used consistently

• Roles of 100% practitioner v part of role not clear

• Core and subject specific areas poorly defined: generic behaviour change skills plus subject specific areas

• Interface with social marketing poorly defined• Interaction with self care models not clear

Roles related to communities

• Community development

• Social norms work

• Peer education

• Cultural change

• Wider determinants of health

Issues facing practitioners in embedding new roles (100%)

• Professional resistance to change

• Accreditation processes are following the changes, slowly

• Evaluation of impact often not robust

• Culture of anxiety about risk, rather than empowerment

• Career pathway not clear

Issues facing practitioners (part of their role)

• Poorly co-ordinated eg RSPH level 2 (health at work award, local schemes e.g. domiciliary care assistants)

• Lack of capacity to deliver training

• Mentorship arrangements ad hoc

• Evaluation of impact often not robust

Research questions

• How can we map current and required competencies effectively?

• How can we identify and evaluate new roles so that their value is known in order to justify adequate investment?

• How can we work with professionals to lead innovation?

Research questions

• How can we work better with the Local Authorities e.g. Children’s Workforce Plan?

• How can we engage the 3rd sector in developing relevant roles?