s Roi '<^urce Center PO Box ia; '“'-'“0x37337 u. 'Washington, DC 20013.-' ?^ 20013 733 /^iNORrnES& PUBLIC HEALTH CAREERS State of California Pete Wilson, GOVERNOR Health and Welfare Agency Sandra R. Smoley, RN, SECRETARY Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development David Werdegar, MD, MPH, DIRECTOR Primary Care Resources and Community Development Division Priscilla Gonzalez-Leiva, RN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR Health Professions Career Opportunity Program Josephine R. DeLeon, Chief Karen C. Munsterman, Staff Services Analyst Margaret Bullock, Secretary Bernie Varner, Art Director Ruth C. Andersen, Graphic Designer Gene Phillips, Editor Student Assistants Rene Porche Rebeca Santana Vanessa Velasquez Health Professions Career Opportunity Program 1600 Ninth St., Rm. 441, Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 654-1730; fax (916) 654-3138 Revised February 1994 A special thanks to all those who have worked on this project PUBUC HEALTH CAREERS Table of contents You can make a difference 2 You are the solution 3 You have many career choices 4 Myths and realities 7 Profile: Shirley C. James 8 Education options 10 Profile: Ruth Ann Terry 15 Profile: Jesse Nodora 18 Applying for graduate study 20 Profile: Kathleen Torres 23 Statement of purpose, letter of recommendation, financial aid 24 Message from HPCO.P 25 For more information 26 Contacts for accredited schools 26 1 OU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE Minorities trained in public health careers are in short supply Many California minority communities are population) comprised 3.4 percent of those underserved in health care services. Such who graduated; and Native Americans (0.8 communities need culturally and percent of the population) comprised 1.2 linguistically competent provid¬ percent.* Similar statistics are found ers of these throughout the health services. Today, professions. These groups the three are underrepresented in largest all professional Public health underserved categories, goals defined: minority groups — including to promote African-Americans, policy¬ and maintain Hispanics, and Native » making and community Americans — are also C decision¬ and individual underrepresented in the making. health; prevent health professions. iThese disease and three groups provide a Over the years, illness; by means largely untapped pool of recruitment of disease control, public health careprovid- and admissions ers who already possess the health esbucation, efforts have needed cultural and preventive increased overall language skills. medicine, and underrepresented the social and minority student Although African-Ameri¬ sanitary sciences. presence in California cans comprise 12.1 percent public health schools, yet of the U.S. population, less still does not reflect than 7 percent bf those who California's minority graduated from School! of population, which is Public Health in 1991 were African- rapidly increasing in percentage of the American; Hispanics (9 percent of the U.S. total population. Some possible course titles • Administration of Preventive Medicine and Medical Clinics • Advanced Nutrition: Vitamins, Proteins, Lipids, and Minerals * Aging and Long- 2 Are you someone who would rather in a position to accomplish these essential prevent disease and illness than treat them goals: after they occur? If you are interested in the preventive aspects of health care, a public 1. Provide better health care services or health career may be ideal for you. Those make possible those services. who choose public health reap a challeng¬ ing, satisfying, and rewarding career. Two 2. Assess current minority community years of postbaccalaureate public health health care needs and prepare for training’ will prepare you for a yearly meeting future needs. income beginning at $22,000 to $30,000 and ranging from $40,000 to $100,000 and more. 3. Through knowledge of health issues, become a valuable resource for improv¬ A career in public health can be exciting, ing or expanding services in especially for an underrepresented minor¬ underserved communities. ity health professional serving in one of California's health care shortage areas. 4. Serve in advocacy positions; work with Once trained in public health, you will be agencies and legislative bodies to promote policies and health GU ARE THE SOLUTION legislation that serve the needs of minority commu¬ nities. I f- hYour A; 5. Attain positions that ensure more cultural and persons sensitive to minority needs are language % hired to provide and design health care awareness services. '.[is needed 6. Serve as a role model for students aspiring to and working toward similar '-i positions. The need already exists for minority public health professionals who possess the cultural sensitivity and linguistic skills necessary to effectively serve minority communities. Some possible course titles Term Care • Appued Multivariate Biostatistics • Biostatistical Consulting • Clinical Nutrition Problems • Communications in Health 3 OU HAVE MANY CAREER CHOICES Possible career activities Accelerate the hiring Design and implement and training of minority hospital services and and bilingual and bicultural departments that are persons where needed. more sensitive to and better meet the needs of Accept leadership minority patients. roles in community organizations and Design therapeutic menus projects involving for minority patients, such as health and preven¬ weight-reduction and diabetic tive health issues. diets. Explain diets from a minority perspective. Bring increased atten¬ tion to and produce Apply approaches and more resources to deal techniques to minority with environmental communities in the U.S. factors largely affecting the health of minority communities. Design and evaluate printed and electronic Design and implement media to be more effective in ... .. , .. studies that accurately assistme minority populations n i-,.- ^ y r r reflect rcro4Tnird1iirtiiro\Tnnsc and to improve health practices in offer solutions for minority their particular communities. communities. Design and Design, administer, and Design systems and train implement more implement family health persons to provide health effective outreach programs more acceptable care services more programs. to minority communities. efficiently and effectively. Some possible course titles Promotion and Education • Community Cancer Education • Community Health Education • Community Mental Health • Community 4 Design, administer, Evaluate and interpret or evaluate preventive the needs of minority health care or mental communities and work health programs serving with agencies and legislative minority communities. bodies for their solution. Design, administer, Instruct and train others or evaluate public or in preventive health care private dental programs and community mental serving minority communities. health issues for minority populations. Educate other health Effectively explain a care members about facility's role to minority environmental hazards communities. and control and sensitize them to the need and methods to improve conditions for Work with industry minorities. to implement Develop, plan, implement, safety devices and evaluate nutrition pro¬ and methods. grams at different levels Design, implement, and (schools, hospitals, etc). evaluate facilities and pro¬ Design them for minority grams serving minorities, needs and preferences. including community clinics, health maintenance organiza¬ Evaluate and improve tions, hospital departments, environmental programs Medicaid and Medicare, Crippled as they relate to minority Children's Services, migrant workers and health care health programs, and others. recipients. Work with maternal Work with others in designing and implementing effective and child health agencies to make dental health education In a manner acceptable these programs programs for minority to minority families, design, more beneficial communities. implement, and evaluate to minority family planning programs. communities. Some possible course titles Organization in the Health Field • Comparative Pubuc Health Systems • Computer Management of Health Data • Computer Use in Dietary 5 Investigate individual Provide the minority and community nutritional community greater access problems; design and and input in hospital policy- implement effective solutions. making and planning activities. Train members of the health care team and serve Play a major role in as a resource person for their preventive health activities. components of mi¬ nority health programs. Establish liaison with Third World countries Provide expertise in and help these countries obtaining adequate solve health problems. funding for proposed Research causes and programs in a variety of health areas. prevention of disorders in minority Work with industrial communities. and agricultural safety Provide expertise to agencies, such as the help facilities and Provide family state or county health programs serve corn- health services departments or Occupa- munities more efficiently to children and tional Safety and Health and effectively. expectant Administration (OSHA) mothers. to investigate violations ^se the mass media to Piihli'r enforce industrial and effectively reach and health is a agricultural safety laws. educate on minority health practices and issues. generic term encompassing Investigate and design several distinct solutions to environmental Work with employee disciplines, such health hazards. Implement groups and unions to as medicine, nursing, solutions. assure maximum industrial and dentistry. It is a safety to members. field little understood Work to increase the by many people, even relevance of health course « . , other health professionals. content for minority school , On page 6, you will find ^ health care or mental children. some myths about public health: health services. Some possible course titles Assessment • Contemporary Issues in Health Services and Management • Control of Airborne Contaminants in Industry • Current Problems 6 Myth 1: Public health work is no more than , , restaurant in¬ spection, water „ Reality: Public professional degree and about one-third go control, and ' health offers a wide directly from college to public health immunization. range of career school with minimal health experience. Opportunities. A career in public Reality: A person health encompasses distinct fields, with with almost any % Myth 3: You need a science persons in each field doing a variety of undergraduate major or an extensive science activities. For instance, restaurant inspec¬ training can choose >'' background to study and work tion and water control may be performed a public health m 'in public health. " ■ ’ " by persons trained in environmental career. Some sciences; immunization clinics may be programs, such as conducted by persons trained in maternal epidemiology or nutritional sciences, may and child health or family health. require an undergraduate science major or a number of science prerequisites. How¬ Yet these are but three of many fields. ever, a nonscience background may in fact Training and career opportunities range be required for other programs. In biostatis¬ tics and urban planning, for instance, some from nutritional sciences to health educa¬ tion to health services administration. desired undergraduate majors are: commu¬ nications, economics, education, media, MYTHS AND REALITIES and psychology. Those students with business administration or political science concentrations move into hospital adminis¬ With public health having at least 30 tration and health services positions. Many specializations, some knowledge common other majors are acceptable in the fields to each of these disciplines is necessary, mentioned. and a few specialties may overlap, such as nutrition sciences and family health. Reality: Some Moreover, curriculums and career experi¬ 4 *' If Myth 4: Public persons trained in ences often allow flexibility in filling other '" health involves public health are roles. You need not be boxed into one role. i,' hospital work;" : " found working in Reality: In the past, ,, and close contact V hospitals. Some work 3 Vi ' Myth 2: Only doctors and a high percentage of with'doctors in schools. However, other health professionals public health and nurses, as / the majority work in seek public health careers. students came from well as exposure 4 clinical, county, other health profes¬ to blood and ”' ” state, or volunteer sions. However, surgery. health agencies and most public health a variety of other students today have no previous health settings. Some possible course titles IN Health Education • Data Base Management Systems • Demographic Materials and Methods • Demography and World Population 7 Shirley C. fames is c^^rently ' enrolled in the master's program in health educa¬ tion at the Shirley University of Caiifomui, BSkeley Schoof C. James ofwublic Health. D rior to enrolling in the School people. The lack of health information of Public Health, James provided in the Navajo language in¬ V worked for the Navajo spired James to pursue her MPH with I Division of Health (NDH) an emphasis in health education. She I in Window Rock, Arizona, plans to incorporate her MPH with her I the capital of the Navajo undergraduate degree in broadcast ^ Nation. She received her journalism to develop media health Bachelor of Arts in Broad- education materials that culturally and (..ast Journalism from Northern linguistically meet the needs of Ameri¬ Arizona University in Flagstaff, can Indians. Arizona. “The more education I achieve, the As a public information officer for more confident I am addressing the the NDH’s Community Health health issues affecting my community. Representative/Outreach Program, This is the reason I’m back in school — James learned of the need to to focus on learning how to effectively communicate the importance of implement minority health education health education to the Navajo programs using the media,” says James. Some possible course titles Problems • Dental Care Administration • Environmental Health • Environmental Hygiene Practices • Environmental Poucy Decision 8