Robert Otok

ASPHER

Aim Competency frameworks are essential for analyzing capabilities of Schools of Public Health to adequately prepare public health (PH) professionals to address contemporary challenges. This study maps the competency profiles of PH training programs in Israel using a novel curriculum mapping tool. Methods This study assessed all five Israeli Healt...

shaped by demographic and socioeconomic shifts, scientific and technological developments, political strife, upheaval and migration, climate change and environmental degradation, food and water insecurity, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, the "new normal" refers to a constant state of risk necessitating a state of "preparedness" for change which ca...

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the critical needs for a well-qualified and proficient workforce to provide comprehensive, high-quality health services, reach minorities, reduce health inequalities, and confront emerging health challenges. We aimed to generate insights on how best to enhance the compatibility between Public Health (...

Background Successful management of public health challenges requires developing and nurturing leadership competencies. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of training simulations to assess public health leadership and decision-making competencies during emergencies as an effective learning and training method. Methods We examined the effects o...

In 2009, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) developed a competency framework to support European Union countries and the European Commission in ensuring a competent public health workforce for Europe. The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic emphasised the importance of harmonised public health strategies and competenc...

With the growth and complexity of current challenges such as globalization, health threats, and ageing society, financial constraints, and social and health inequalities, amultidisciplinary public health workforce is needed, supported by new skills and expertise. It has been demonstrated that public health education needs to include a wider range o...

Introduction: Public health is continuously challenged by a shortage of workforce. There are various reasons for this: 1) public health is less visible than traditional health professions and people may be unfamiliar with the nature and opportunities involved in entering this career field; 2) lack of official recognition of public health as a profe...

A 'new normal' in public health and healthcare has arisen with socioeconomic shifts, technological developments, political strife, climate change, environmental degradation, and COVID-19. Challenges cannot be solved by one discipline or profession alone, but requires multiple sectors coming together, combining knowledge, expertise and methods. One...

Objectives: The study aimed to generate insights on how best to enhance the compatibility between Public Health training program competencies and the implementation of competencies required by employers to address current and emerging public health needs. Methods: A survey adapted from the WHO-ASPHER Competency Framework for the Public Health Workf...

The Covid-19 pandemic has shown European governments were not properly prepared for such a public health emergency affecting all our countries and with deep health, social and economic consequences. Public health and other essential public services had been depleted through years of austerity [1]. This winter the world faces a series of existential...

The global COVID-19 crisis exposed the critical need for a highly qualified public health workforce. This qualitative research aimed to examine public health workforce competencies needed to face COVID-19 challenges and identify the gaps between training programs and the competency demands of real-world disasters and pandemics. Through a sample of...

War has devastating impacts on the health of populations. The consequences of war are multidimensional, affecting social life and health infrastructure, as well as environmental health. Along with immediate and long-term effects on the physical and mental health of all those involved, the consequences of war have the greatest impacts on vulnerable...

The statement can be also consulted at: https://www.aspher.org/news,64.html

Background Social identities - e.g., sex/gender, ethnicity, ability, sexual orientation - and their intersections shape health inequalities in societies. Yet, a systematic, critical integration into public health curricula is lacking, especially in the European region. To address this gap, we developed a curriculum on social identities and their im...

Objective: The main objective was to examine, how European Schools of Public Health (SPHs) responded to the COVID-19 pandemic through 2020, across the main activity domains of the SPHs. Methods: A cross-sectional survey based on an online questionnaire concerning the anti-COVID-19 activities from 1st March to 31st October 2020 of the 117 members of...

Health services quality and sustainability rely mainly on a qualified workforce. Adequately trained public health personnel protect and promote health, avert health disparities, and allow rapid response to health emergencies. Evaluations of the healthcare workforce typically focus on physicians and nurses in curative medical venues. Few have evalua...

Over the past few decades, public health systems have been slowly but steadily eroding, culminating in national governments’ inability to swiftly respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. This structural erosion has not only led to a lack of preparedness, but also a decreased the ability of governments to generate sufficient human, physical, financial and...

Introduction: Public health is continuously challenged by a shortage of workforce. There are various reasons for this: 1) public health is less visible than traditional health professions and people may be unfamiliar with the nature and opportunities involved in entering this career field; 2) lack of official recognition of public health as a profe...

Statement by the Global Network for Academic Public Health on the Beirut explosion of August 4th, 2020.

The WHO-ASPHER Competency Framework for the Public Health Workforce in the European Region is aimed at policy-makers, human resources for health planners and professionals with a particular interest in the public health workforce, and other stakeholders, such as education institutions, public health institutes and others responsible for implementin...

Background: The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) is confronted with challenges to improve education for public health professionals. In this article, we attempt to answer the question: Did ASPHER members improve their organization and programmes to enable their graduates to acquire the competences to tackle t...

Background The ASPHER V4 Working Group (WG) was established in 2016 and officially launched during the 9th European Public Health Conference in Vienna. One of the key objectives of the WG is to strengthen public health capacity development in V4 countries. The WG supports the implementation of the recently reviewed European Action Plan for Strength...

This collaborative workshop brings together major stakeholders in the area of public health workforce development, including ASPHER, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), International Union for Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE) and EUPHA Section on Health Workforce Research... Connecting the needs of the public health gra...

The establishment and continuing development of a sufficient and competent public health workforce is fundamental for the planning, implementation, evaluation, effect and ethical validity of public health strategies and policies and, thus, for the development of the population’s health and the cost-effectiveness of health and public health systems...

The public health profession in Europe has a leadership role for ensuring European’s health in the twenty-first century and therefore must assume responsibility for advancing education for research and practice. Three fundamental questions are explored: (1) What are the main public health problems facing public health professionals; (2) What are th...

Objectives To consider the stage of implementation of main competences and EPHO skills in selected schools of public health in four European countries—France, Poland, Portugal, and the UK. Methods By use of visual analogue scales (VAS) ranging 1–5, the leads of three schools of public health (SPH) in each of the four countries, France, Poland, Port...

With the growth and complexity of current challenges such as globalization, health threats, and ageing society, financial constraints, and social and health inequalities, a multidisciplinary public health workforce is needed, supported by new skills and expertise. It has been demonstrated that public health education needs to include a wider range...

In 2011 the Agency for Public Health Education Accreditation (APHEA) was initially launched focusing on Master level (second cycle) education. Between 2012 and 2013 the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region, APHEA and partner schools conducted a study on the compliance of Master level programmes of public health to the accr...

The development of the public health workforce is a cornerstone in WHO’s Action Plan for Strengthening Public Health Services and Capacities. Public health education shall combine the Essential Public Health Operations – surveillance; monitoring; health protection and promotion; disease prevention; services delivery; communication and research – wi...

Public health needs to adapt to the complex context of 21st century Europe. Unquestionably, leaders for health require new skills to face a myriad of wicked problems and challenges that are at a critical juncture for potential improvements. Public health curricula are traditionally oriented around core educational disciplines, and there is little r...

Available at: http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/248304/Addressing-needs-in-the-public-health-workforce-in-Europe.pdf?ua=1 Health systems in Europe face a number of increasingly complex challenges. Globalization, evolving health threats, an ageing society, financial constraints on government spending, and social and health inequa...

Introduction At the present time, higher education institutions dealing with education for public health in Europe and beyond are faced with a complex and comprehensive task of responding to global health challenges. Review Literature reviews in public health and global health and exploration of internet presentations of regional and global organi...

Competency-based education is increasingly popular, especially in the area of continuing professional development. Many competency frameworks have been developed; however, few address leadership competencies for European public health professionals. The aim of this study was to develop a public health leadership competency framework to inform a lea...

FOREWORD This first edition of a Guide for Distance Learning has been developed, based on the ASPHER Survey on Schools and Departments of Public Health (SDPH) 2011/2012. Institutions from all corners of Europe contributed with their experience in the new and rapidly developing field of Blended Learning. There are many different and partly overlappi...

To explore largely unknown experience and expectations of European employers of public health professionals with regard to competences required to perform in the best way for the public health. A survey targeting employers in Europe was carried out September 2011-October 2012. The web-based questionnaire on public health competences and expected pe...

FOREWORD This first edition of a Guide for Distance Learning has been developed, based on the ASPHER Survey on Schools and Departments of Public Health (SDPH) 2011/2012. Institutions from all corners of Europe contributed with their experience in the new and rapidly developing field of Blended Learning. There are many different and partly overlappi...

Objectives: To assess the exit competences of public health graduates across a diverse European landscape. Methods: The target population comprised 80 full institutional members of the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region with a participation rate 82.5 %. The web-based questionnaire covered institutional profiles and th...

A survey targeting ASPHER members was launched in 2010/11, being a first initiative in improving ethics education in European Schools of Public Health. An 8-items questionnaire collected informatio ...

Public health ethics is gaining recognition as a vital topic for public health education. The subject was highlighted in a Delphi survey of future priorities of member schools of The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER). We conducted a survey of teaching public health ethics in Bachelors and Masters of Public Heal...

The European Agency for Accreditation in Public Health Education (APHEA) was launched in 2011. This followed nearly two decades of efforts in a variety of programmes supported by international donor agencies, and others that provided experience and field testing of peer review systems for schools of public health in Europe. The Association of Schoo...