National Task Force on Accreditation inHealth Education

Sponsored by:Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE)American Association for Health Education (AAHE)

Task Force Co-Chairs

Collins O. Airhihenbuwa, PhD

Pennsylvania State University

John P. Allegrante, PhD

Columbia University

Task Force Members

Co-Chairs: Collins O. Airhihenbuwa, PhD John P. Allegrante, PhD

Members: Evelyn E. Ames, PhD, CHES Michael D. Barnes, PhD, CHES Jay M. Bernhardt, PhD, MPH David A. Birch, PhD, CHES Rena Boss-Victoria, DrPH, MSN Ellen M. Capwell, PhD, CHES W. William Chen, PhD, CHES Joan Cioffi, PhD Patricia Evans, MPH Cezanne Garcia, MHP, CHES Audrey R. Gotsch, DrPH, CHES

Mary Hawkins, MSPH, MEd, CHES William C. Livingood, PhD, CHES Kathleen R. Miner, PhD, MPH, CHES Henry Montes, MPH Sheila M. Patterson, PhD, CHES Kathleen Roe, DrPH Carolyn Teich, PhD Donna Videto, PhD, CHES Boyce Williams, PhD

Ex Officio: M. Elaine Auld, MPH, CHES Becky J. Smith, PhD, CHES

Task Force Membership

Broad representation of professional preparation institutions, both private and public– Research University

– Comprehensive University

– Four-Year College

– Historically Black Colleges and Universities

– Community College

– Community and School Health Emphasis

– School of Education and School of Allied Health

Organizational representative of the Task Force with voting members

Coalition of National Health Education Organizations (CNHEO)

Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) National Commission for Health Education Credentialing

(NCHEC) National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education

(NCATE) SOPHE/AAHE Baccalaureate Program Approval

Committee (SABPAC) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)

Genesis of the Task Force

Twenty-First Century Report on the Future of Health Education

Future Directions for Quality Assurance of Professional Preparation in Health Education – A Report of a Joint Invitation Meeting Sponsored by SOPHE and AAHE, January 15-16, 2000

Credentialing in the U.S.

Individual level– Certification (CHES)

– Licensure

– Registration

Institutional level– Program Approval (SABPAC)

– Accreditation (CEPH, NCATE/AAHE)

Task Force Charge and Timeline

To develop a detailed plan for a coordinated accreditation system for undergraduate and graduate programs in health education, which will be considered by both the AAHE and SOPHE Boards of Directors/Trustees.

Task to be completed in 36 months, January 2001 - December 2003

Goal 1

Review existing information and gather additional data where gaps exist on current mechanisms of quality assurance in professional preparation of undergraduate and graduate health education programs.– Future Directions Report

– Background Literature Review

– Participants from Future Directions Meeting

Goal 2

Develop a detailed framework for a comprehensive, coordinated quality assurance system that meets commonly accepted standards of accreditation, has profession-wide support and addresses the following issues:– Organizational structure, governance, and administration– Relationship with existing credentialing systems (NCHEC,

CEPH, SABPAC, and NCATE)– Staff and resources needed to operate– Support of university administrators– Incentives for accreditation– Compatibility with various health education degrees and

practice settings– DOE or similar type of national recognition

Goal 3

Design and implement mechanisms to gather profession-wide input into any proposed new systems, including, but not limited to:– Presentations at professional meetings– Articles in professional journals and newsletters– A special meeting of professional preparation programs in health

education, similar to the one held by the Graduate Standards Committee in Dallas in 1996

Goal 4

Develop a business plan and time frame for implementation of the proposed accreditation system that addresses, at a minimum, the following issues:– Introduction/transition to the new system

– Communication/promotion to professional preparation programs, administrators, employers, and others

– Resources needed during transition

Issues and Priorities

Standards - competency, generic, size, etc. Levels and specialization - entry point Philosophy - competitive, collaborative, etc. Endpoints - impact on professionals Context - relation to and impact on existing systems

Data Gaps

Perceptions of the Profession Health Education Credentialing Groups Credentialing Groups Outside Profession of Health

Education Professional Certification Groups Academic Professional Preparation Institutions

Process for Task Force

Timeline of Task Force Meetings– January 2001– April 2001– October 2001– February 2002– April 2002– September 2002– February 2003– April 2003– September 2003

Communication– Semi-annual reports to SOPHE and AAHE Boards– Periodic updates to stakeholder groups at meetings and other venues

Progress to Date Meeting 1, January 2001

– Reviewed charge to Task Force

– Discussed the need for program accreditation and implications

– Working groups formed to identify issues, priorities, and data gaps

Progress to Date Meeting 2, April 2001

– Refined data collection methods for surveys of professionals and professional preparation programs

– Discussed implications and consultations with accrediting groups within and outside health education

– Discussed issue of generic vs. practice-setting specialization, including undergraduate and graduate

Progress to Date Meeting 3, October 2001

– Discussed initial findings from surveys

– Decided on additional analyses

– Discussed implications of Accreditation on CHES

– Discussed the unique nature of accreditation for school health compared to community/public health

Progress to DateMeeting 4, February 2002

– Discussed the final results from the surveys– Decided on some additional analyses– Reached a CONSENSUS on a single accreditation

system for both undergraduate and graduate programs in School Health, most likely with NCATE pending discussions with NCATE

– Reached a CONSENSUS on a single accreditation system for both undergraduate and graduate programs in community/public health, most likely with CEPH pending discussions with CEPH

– Established a committee to develop standards for undergraduate accreditation before meeting with CEPH

Progress to Date Meeting 5 & 6 (April & September 2002)

– Revisited and refined Interim Consensus Statement on Principles and Recommendations

Progress to Date Meeting 7, February 2003

– Received official notification from CEPH of interest to become the accrediting agency for graduate and undergraduate programs in public and community health education

– The Task Force had already accepted NCATE as the accrediting agency for graduate and undergraduate programs in school health education

Progress to Date Meeting 8, April 2003

– Developed a listing of frequently-asked questions about accreditation

– Developed a plan for web-based dissemination for feedback on the preliminary report

– Scheduled the last meeting of the Task Force for September 2003

Principles

1. Health education is a single profession, with common roles and responsibilities.

2. Professional preparation in health education provides the health education specialist with knowledge and skills that form a foundation of common and setting-specific competencies.

3. Accreditation is the primary quality assurance mechanism in higher education.

4. The health education profession is responsible for assuring quality in professional preparation and practice.

Recommendation 1

That accreditation be the quality assurance mechanism for health education professional preparation, and should replace existing approval processes in an orderly transition.

Recommendation 2

That there be a unified accreditation system, comprising two parallel, coordinated accreditation mechanisms for community and school health education, which are responsive to the needs of the health education profession. These mechanisms must assure that common and specific competencies in health education are addressed at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

– A. That NCATE is the preferred accrediting entity to provide a single coordinated accreditation mechanism for school health education programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

– B. That CEPH is the preferred accrediting entity to provide a single coordinated accreditation mechanism for community/public health education at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Recommendation 3

That a coordinated accreditation system should build upon the best practices of the existing mechanism.

Recommendation 4

That graduate professional preparation programs must assure that students perform all health education competencies, and that their performance reflect graduate-level proficiency.

Recommendation 5

That designations be created to distinguish the practice level of health educators at the undergraduate and graduate levels. We recommend that these designations be:– A. Health Education Specialist (HES) for the undergraduate level from

an accredited program

– B. Master Health Education Specialist (MHES) for the graduate level from an accredited program

Recommendation 6

That NCHEC is the appropriate entity to oversee the process of individual certification at both the undergraduate and graduates levels. We further recommend that:– A. Persons who successfully complete the certification processes

will be designated as CHES (undergraduate level) or MCHES (graduate level). Only students from accredited programs/schools will be eligible for MCHES.

– B. Students from non-accredited undergraduate programs/schools will be permitted to sit for CHES for a reasonable length of time. After that, students from non-accredited undergraduate programs/schools will be ineligible to sit for CHES. This window is recommended to allow the new accreditation system to be fully functioning while offering a transition period for programs/schools to prepare and qualify for accreditation.

– C. Appropriate deeming of those holding CHES be considered, and that persons holding a master’s degree with CHES be provided a window of time of up to 24 months to earn MCHES designation.

Recommendation 7

That the results of the work of the Task Force be articulated to the Association of Schools of Public Health, Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine, Coalition of National Health Education Organizations, National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, American Public Health Association, and other relevant groups.

Next Steps

Elicit comments and suggestions on Interim Consensus Statement of Principles and Recommendations as well as Frequently Asked Questions posted on the Web.

Meeting 9 (final meeting), September 12-14, 2003.

Provide Suggestions and Comments to:– Collins Airhihenbuwa, aou@psu.edu– John Allegrante, allegrante@tc.columbia.edu