Expert Meeting on Professionalization of the Public Health Workforce

19 June 2018, Imperial College London, United Kingdom

In 2017, WHO/Europe convened the Coalition of Partners (CoP) to strengthen public health capacities and services. The CoP brings together experts and practitioners from within national public health services, international organizations, civil society and academia. One of the objectives adopted by the CoP partners is that the public health workforce is recognized and valued as a profession. In pursuit of this objective, CoP experts selected and initiated 3 joint actions, as follows:

• Core Competencies Framework for Public Health Workforce in the European Region: the framework will enable standardization and consistent definition of the skills required of public health professionals. As such, the target audience is public health professionals, public health agencies, employer organizations, professional bodies, credentialing and accreditation bodies and training institutions delivering continuous professional development;
• Handbook for managing public health professional credentialing and accreditation systems in the European Region: the handbook will serve as a reference tool for the national education and health authorities, as well as for professional bodies, concerned with establishing and strengthening national credentialing and accreditation systems;
• Roadmap towards Professionalization of the Public Health Workforce in the European Region: the roadmap will support countries in taking action to further professionalize the public health workforce, describing a variety of measures that countries can take, and identifying considerations related to the implementation of these measures.

The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER), the WHO Collaborating Centre for Public Health Education and Training, Imperial College London, United Kingdom, and WHO/Europe are convening this 1-day expert meeting to present the draft of the deliverables listed above. This meeting will provide an opportunity to reflect on progress and to gather feedback, so as to ensure that the final deliverables will meet the needs of their intended users. Another important function of this expert meeting will be to provide a platform for promoting the use of these resources, and to generate creative and innovative ideas on using the project deliverables in real life contexts. The outputs of the day will inform and accelerate the scale-up and pace of the relevant efforts at European Region and individual country-level.

The meeting will follow a workshop format, and take place in London over 1 day, Tuesday 19 June 2018. It will take place prior to the annual ASPHER Deans’ and Directors’ Retreat. The emphasis will be on interactive sessions that allow for validation of the draft deliverables, exchange of ideas and inspiration.

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