Association of Schools of Public Health

The Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH) has undertaken a wide range of public health linkage activities over the past year. The scope of its programs reach not only schools and students, but into the very heart of public health practice by encouraging and enhancing ways of bringing academicians and practitioners together. These activities are designed to build and enhance working relationships between academia and public health agencies, community-based organizations, and managed care organizations.

PROGRAMS INVOLVING GRANTS TO SCHOOLS OF PUBLIC HEALTH

ASPH/HRSA Cooperative Agreement
The ASPH/Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Cooperative Agreement (CA) is beginning its second year of a five-year award from the Bureau of Health Professions. The intent of the CA is to provide curricula development and training mechanisms which cut across the HRSA health service delivery programs and public health education programs. It helps address the need to prepare better educated, culturally sensitive public health practitioners. Recent awards include:

University of Texas-Houston School of Public Health

• Enhancement of Collaboration Between the University of Texas School of Public Health and State and Local Health Agencies Through Distance Learning

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health

• Planning a Certificate Program in the Core Public Health Concepts

University at Albany SUNY School of Public Health

• Training Public Health Professionals in Medical Genetics

A new cycle of awards to accredited schools of public health is currently underway; for details contact Alison Wojciak at (202) 296-1099 or e-mail: acw@asph.org.

HRSA Small Grants to Schools of Public Health
Since 1989, HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions has been providing small grants or purchase orders ($10,000) to accredited schools of public health to foster public health practice activities and encourage linkages with the public health practice community. Practice Coordinators report that these funds are invaluable to them in planning the activities of their offices of public health practice. In many cases these funds helped to establish an office of public health practice in their schools, and now sustain it in various ways (see publication below: Strong Schools, Strong Partners). Recently schools have used these funds for practice activities related to a particular theme or discipline (i.e., environmental health, managed care, etc.).

ASPH/CDC/ATSDR Cooperative Agreement
The ASPH/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Cooperative Agreement (CA) is in its 17th year of a grants program administered jointly by ASPH and the CDC’s Public Health Practice Program Office. Funds from the CDC’s various centers, institutes and offices are awarded to accredited schools of public health towards the goal of improving interactions between public health academicians and workers. Since the program’s inception in 1981, over $77 million has been awarded to fund research activities in schools of public health. This year, the initial award included funding for 55 projects totaling over $9.66 million (up nearly $1 million from last year’s initial award). ASPH is accepting letters of intent for funding proposals from schools of public health; contact Sara Riedel, (202) 296-1099 or e-mail: ser@asph.org for details.

Student Internship/Fellowship Programs:

Internship Program: ASPH/HRSA
In September, 1997, ASPH announced the beginning of an internship program with HRSA administered through the ASPH/HRSA Cooperative Agreement. Six positions in the Bureau of HIV/AIDS were announced for the 1997-98 academic year, and in response, 65 applications were received from students in schools of public health. The excellent response from students interested in pursuing a practice experience during their formal public health degree program is encouraging. ASPH is hopeful that all four HRSA bureaus will provide such opportunities in the future to help meet the demand.

Internship Program: ASPH/CDC/ATSDR
ASPH has administered an internship program with the CDC and ATSDR since 1983 to provide students enrolled in degree programs in schools of public health opportunities for practical experience in a public health agency. Students come to CDC for a 12-week period, usually during the summer, to work on projects under the direction of CDC’s leading public health experts. In 1996, the CDC announced the availability of 102 opportunities. ASPH received 610 student applications, placing 83 interns in 11 CDC centers, institutes and offices last year. An additional 8 interns were placed in CDC Prevention Research Centers at various locations in the country.

Public Health System Fellowship Program: ASPH/CDC/ATSDR
ASPH offers fellowship opportunities to degree candidates and early career professionals with graduate degrees in public health. This program offers an opportunity to round out academic training and gain on-site public health experience, while continuing to develop professional skills and expertise. A total of 28 fellowship opportunities were announced last year, and ASPH received 200 applications in response.

Community Health Assessment Experiential Learning Program: ASPH/CDC/ATSDR
This program provides public health students with backgrounds in biostatistics and epidemiology a unique opportunity to work with local health departments in analyzing existing data sets and evaluating community intervention strategies. Students are able to hone their skills in policy development, data development and analysis in areas of critical need. Two interns were placed last year.

Upcoming Publications

"Strong Schools, Strong Partners"
Developed by ASPH under contract to HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions, this report summarizes some of the linkage, capacity building and student practica experience activities undertaken by schools of public health between 1989 and 1995. The report draws its information from progress reports schools were required to submit to BHPr detailing what each has done to increase its practice activities. Thus, it presents a picture of the broad range of challenges and successes universities face in increasing their practice agendas, and of the status of practice experiences in schools of public health. The report is in its final editing stages and is expected to be available in early 1998.

"Demonstrating Excellence in Public Health Practice"
A paper is currently being developed by a subgroup of ASPH public health practice coordinators entitled, "Demonstrating Excellence in Practice." The purpose of the paper is to explore the academic role in public health practice and the role of practice in academia. It will propose a definition of academic public health practice and address the issue of defining, demonstrating and evaluating scholarship in academic public health practice. Recommendations will be included regarding curriculum development and faculty promotion and tenure. These issues are critical to linking academia to practice, improving the relevance of public health education, advancing the competence of the public health workforce and ultimately having an impact in improving the health of the public. The paper will be presented for review to the ASPH Council of Public Health Practice Coordinators at its next meeting. An external review will also occur involving practitioners from the federal, state and local levels of public health.

"Research Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice"
An annual supplement to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) is coordinated by ASPH staff and faculty. It highlights successful collaborative research activities between academic public health institutions and practice agencies and organizations. The third such supplement was published with the November/December, 1997 issue of AJPM. Abstracts are currently being reviewed for presentation at Prevention 98. Presenters may be asked to develop their talks into papers for inclusion in a future supplement on research linkages.

Public Health Reports
ASPH is currently negotiating a contract with a commercial publisher to publish Public Health Reports in collaboration with the U.S. Public Health Service. This bi-monthly peer-reviewed journal is an excellent forum for both academicians and practitioners to submit papers on innovative public health practice activities and collaborations.

Issues in Public Health Practice
Dr. Louis Rowitz (University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health) is developing a series of monographs published by Sage entitled, "Issues in Public Health Practice." The series will include 20-25 monographs co-written by academics and practitioners. He is currently soliciting contributions from academicians and practitioners, and may be contacted by e-mail at: louis.rowitz@uic.edu.

ASPH, HRSA and Managed Care
ASPH, under contract to HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions, is in the process of developing a white paper addressing the topic "growth of managed care organizations: implications for change in schools of public health." It summarizes the discussions which took place during a meeting addressing the impact of managed care on current approaches to educating and training the public health workforce. The paper will include recommendations for schools of public health to develop alternative approaches for preparing a workforce capable of functioning in a managed care environment.

Academic Public Health Caucus of APHA

Founded by ASPH in 1992, the Academic Public Health Caucus of the American Public Health Association (APHA) provides an opportunity for the exchange of ideas related to public health education, training, and practice-based research between academicians and public health professionals. Once a year, the Academic Public Health Caucus solicits abstracts for presentations for the annual meeting of the APHA. Topics have been related to innovations in professional development, curriculum development, distance education, student practica, practice-based research, and career paths for graduates, among others.

Practice Achievement Awards

As part of ASPH’s Project Link, a grant funded by CDC’s Office of Public Health Practice, an awards program is currently being developed to recognize students and faculty in schools of public health who have demonstrated excellence in public health practice. An advisory committee comprised of ASPH public health practice coordinators has been assembled to develop the criteria and guidelines for the program. Cash awards and funds to travel to the annual APHA meeting may be available through this project.

Upcoming Meetings of the Practice Coordinators Council

CDC Practice Coordinators’ Workshop
A meeting sponsored by CDC’’s Public Health Practice Program Office is tentatively scheduled to take place in Spring, 1998 in Atlanta. The purpose of this workshop is to develop a strategic plan for the Council of Practice Coordinators that meshes with the goals of the CDC’s Public Health Practice Program Office and major priorities of the CDC’s centers, institutes and offices (CIO’s). Practice coordinators would like to provide input into the development of the priorities of the CIO’s, and revisit the paper, "Demonstrating Excellence in Public Health Practice."

HRSA Practice Coordinators’ Workshop: July 12 - 15, 1998, Ann Arbor, MI
A meeting sponsored by HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions is scheduled to take place this summer, hosted by the University of Michigan School of Public Health and planned jointly with ASPH and HRSA. The Practice Coordinators’ Council will continue to implement activities related to the strategic plan, highlighting community-oriented strategies. Partnerships between the University of Michigan SPH and community organizations in Detroit will be highlighted.