The Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice (Council) is comprised of leaders from national organizations representing the public health practice and academic communities. The Council grew out of the Public Health Faculty/Agency Forum, which developed recommendations for improving the relevance of public health education in order to meet the demands of public health in the practice sector. The need for this improvement, and for public health professionals to place a higher value on practice-specific training and research, were documented in the 1988 Institute of Medicine report The Future of Public Health.

The Council's Mission:
To improve public health practice and education by fostering, coordinating, and monitoring links between academia and the public health and healthcare community, developing and advancing innovative strategies to build and strengthen public health infrastructure, and creating a process for continuing public health education throughout one’s career.

Member Organizations:
American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM)
American Public Health Association (APHA)
Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH)
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
Association for Prevention Teaching and Research (APTR)
Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Community-Campus Partnerships for Health (CCPH)
Council of Accredited Masters of Public Health Programs (CAMP)
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH)
National Environmental Health Association (NEHA)
National Network of Public Health Institutes (NNPHI)
National Library of Medicine (NLM)
Quad Council of Public Health Nursing Organizations (Quad Council)
Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE)

The Council is staffed by the Public Health Foundation and is funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

For more information about the Council, please visit www.phf.org/link/index.htm or contact Pamela Saungweme at psaungweme@phf.org or 202-218-4424.

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Prologue

Development
The Council developed the original Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals in 2001 to help strengthen public health workforce development. In June 2009, the Council adopted the revised Core Competencies, following recommendations by Council members and the public, to update and refine the original set. The Core Competencies build on several years of work on this subject by the Council and numerous other organizations and individuals in public health academic and practice settings. The list has been cross-walked with the Essential Public Health Services to ensure that the Core Competencies help build the skills necessary for assuring the delivery of these services.

The revised list of Core Competencies was reviewed by over 600 public health professionals during an extensive public comment period. The Council received feedback from reviewers via several mechanisms: the Council's website, town hall meetings, e-mail messages, and letters sent to Council staff. The comments provided by public health professionals (in a broad array of disciplines and practice settings) have led to this consensus set of core competencies that can be used to guide public health workforce development efforts!

Uses
The Core Competencies are designed to foster workforce development by helping academic institutions and training providers to develop curricula and course content, and evaluate public health education and training programs. The Core Competencies are also used in practice settings as a framework for hiring and evaluating staff; assessing organization-wide gaps in skills and knowledge; and accreditation preparation. Academic institutions and health departments nationwide—as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Public Health Preparedness, and Health Resources and Services Administration’s Public Health Training Centers—have used the Core Competencies. The Core Competencies have also been included in objectives and recommendations set forth in Healthy People 2010 and the Institute of Medicine’s reports Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century (2003) and The Future of the Public’s Health in the 21st Century (1988).

The Core Competencies have served as the foundation for the development of more specific sets of competencies that can be used in conjunction with the Core Competencies. The Core Competencies were crafted to transcend the boundaries of specific disciplines and to help unify the public health profession. Therefore, this list of cross-cutting competencies may not contain competencies that are specific to particular disciplines within the field. Moreover, because this list is meant to represent the core, it may not contain many skills that are necessary for the performance of certain jobs within certain practice settings. Individuals, employers, educators, and trainers should use this list as a starting point for developing a modified list of competencies that matches their needs. Whenever possible, as users integrate the Core Competencies into discipline specific sets, consistency of domain names should be maintained.

The competencies are divided into the following eight domains:

• Analytic/Assessment Skills
• Policy Development/Program Planning Skills
• Communication Skills
• Cultural Competency Skills
• Community Dimensions of Practice Skills
• Basic Public Health Sciences Skills
• Financial Planning and Management Skills
• Leadership and Systems Thinking Skills

The recently adopted Core Competencies apply to the mid tier public health professional.

Period of Adoption
The Council on Linkages Between Academia and Public Health Practice adopted the original Core Competencies in 2001. The revised Core Competencies were adopted in June 2009, following recommendations by Council members and the public, to revise the original set of Core Competencies.

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Guidance Definitions

Core Competency:

The individual skills desirable for the delivery of Essential Public Health Services. Intended levels of mastery, and therefore learning objectives for workers within each competency, will differ depending upon their backgrounds, job duties and years of experience.

Tier 1 Core Competencies:

Tier 1 Core Competencies apply to public health professionals who carry out the day-to-day tasks of public health organizations and are not in management positions.  Responsibilities of these public health professionals may include basic data collection and analysis, fieldwork, program planning, outreach activities, programmatic support, and other organizational tasks. In general, an individual at the Tier 1 level may be educated at the baccalaureate level, or educated at a higher level with limited experience as a public health professional.

Tier 2 (Mid Tier) Core Competencies:

Tier 2 (Mid Tier) Core Competencies apply to individuals with program management and/or supervisory responsibilities. Other responsibilities may include: program development, program implementation, program evaluation, establishing and maintaining community relations, managing timelines and work plans, presenting arguments and recommendations on policy issues etc. In general, Tier 2 competencies apply to individuals who have earned an MPH or related degree and have at least 5 years of work experience in public health or a related field (combined pre and post master's degree) or individuals who do not have an MPH or related degree, but have at least 10 years of experience working in the public health field. 

Tier 3 Core Competencies:

Tier 3 Core Competencies apply to individuals at a senior/management level and leaders of public health organizations. In general, an individual who is responsible for the major programs or functions of an organization, setting a strategy and vision for the organization, and/or building the organization’s culture can be considered to be a Tier 3 public health professional. Tier 3 public health professionals (e.g. health officers, executive directors, CEOs etc.) typically have staff that report to them, and are educated at a similar or higher level than their Tier 2 counterparts.

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