TNEC Staff Contribute to Public Health Competency Report

Local public health agencies in Massachusetts and throughout the U.S. provide a wide range of services to protect the public's health.  to ensure more consistency across local public health agencies, in March 2006, the Local Public Health Institute of Massachusetts' Advisory Council established a subcommittee to develop a competency model and set of competencies.

The Agencies focus is emergency preparedness training for the diverse local public health workforce in the Commonwealth:  health officers and agents, sanitarians, public health nurses, board members and other local staff and volunteers

The Institute is funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and governed by an Advisory Council comprised of local health experts and stakeholders from academia,, professional association and state and local government.

The New England Consortium (TNEC) Hazardous Waste Worker Health and Safety Training Program represents UMass Lowell's Center for Public Health Research and Health Promotion , the Department of Community Health and Sustainability and the School of Health and Environment on the Advisory Council of the Massachusetts Local Public Health Institute.  Paul Morse, Project Director for TNEC and David Coffey, Training Manager participated in the ongoing deliberations and contributed to the final report.

The mission of the Local Public Health Institute of Massachusetts is to provide and ensure a competent workforce by developing and strengthening the capacities of 351 local boards of health (board members and staff) to respond to public health threats and emergencies through sound education and training. The Institute:

• Serves as a clearinghouse for information about training opportunities for local public health board members and staff.
• Undertake ongoing assessment at the local level.
• Identifies and develops courses for local public health audiences.
  
• Develops and maintains strategic alliances to support local boards of health in their day-to-day work.

In February of this year the group completed its tasks and has created a Competency Report. The document represents the final product of the subcommittee's work, which includes descriptions of nine, interdisciplinary, cross-cutting competencies and eighteen program area competencies.  These competencies will be used to assist with developing and delivering comprehensive training programs for the local public health workforce.  The Local Public Health Institute of Massachusetts will identify training programs that address these competencies and work to fill any identified training gaps.  The lack of standardized field training for many of the program areas has been identified as a major concern and should be a priority for new course development.  For more information on the Institute and its programs go to the website address: http://masslocalinstitute.org/.