Public Health Practice: A History

1988
Institute of Medicine report, The Future of Public Health, says that schools of public health are “somewhat isolated from the field of public health practice” and that there is a dearth of professional training and leadership in public health agencies and the development of necessary knowledge across the full spectrum of practice was inadequate.

1990

The Public Health Faculty/Agency Forum is established to address this concern and to recommend ways to: 1) strengthen relationships between public health academicians and public health practitioners in public agencies; 2) improve the teaching, training, and practice of public health; 3) establish firm practice links between schools of public health and public agencies; and 4) collaborate with others in achieving the nation’s Year 2000 health objectives.

1991
Forum members Dr. Andrew Sorenson (University of South Carolina president, 2002–2008) and Dr. Bialek issue final report, The Public Health Faculty/Agency Forum: Linking Graduate Education and Practice. The report recommends a variety of initiatives and strategies to improve the teaching and practice of public health by building meaningful collaborative relationships. The Forum issues a list of "Universal Competencies" to help guide education and training.

1992

The Council on Linkages Between Academic and Public Health Practice is created, bringing together a coalition of representatives from 17 public health organizations.

1994
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services creates the Public Health Functions Steering Committee.

1997

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issues the steering committee’s report,The Public Health Workforce: An Agenda for the 21^st Century.

1999

The Association of Schools of Public Health launches the first in its Demonstrations in Excellence in Public Health Practice. The field begins to build on the Council on Linkages’ core competencies.

2001

The Council adopts the original set of Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals.

2002

The Institute of Medicine releases Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21^st Century.

2004

The Association of Schools of Public Health launches the Demonstration in Excellence in Practice-based Teaching for Public Health.

2006

The Association of Schools of Public Health launches the Demonstration in Excellence in Research-based Teaching for Public Health.

2009

The Council on Linkages Between Academic and Public Health Practice adopts new core competencies for public health practitioners.