Guidelines for the Development of Graduate Programs in Public Health Administration

Abstract

This qualitative research aimed to explore guidelines for Public Health Administration curricula development and improvement. The interviewing methods via Cisco WebEx online, telephone and e-mail were used to collect data. Key informants were 16 persons selected from 4 types of participants, namely the Community Public Health Council members, education administrator or program chair, public health administration program academics, and alumni of public health administration. Data were analyzed by content analysis.

The results indicated that guidelines for Public Health Administration curricula development should emphasize on leaning outcomes of learners which meet graduate qualifications standard. The curriculum must empower learners for leadership in driving his/her organization successfully. The curriculum should produce public health administrators, according to the needs of 21^st century, having both hard and soft skills literacy, including statistical analysis, epidemiology, research methodology and secondary data management, having knowledge and understanding of health service system, and having professional standard practices of community public health profession which consists of the following 4 standards: knowledge, conduct, skills and ethics. The curriculum should have development process in producing administrators/executives with good morality and ethics and have sustainable management morals. Curriculum development should focus on the development of learners' potential in managing health organizations at all levels, that maximizes the benefits of the people, and emphasizing on leadership for changes in health.

Recommendation is that, public health administration curriculum management should emphasize on teachers, teaching environment which will enhance public health administrators to understand other people’s lifestyle and his/her own lifestyle, teaching/learning activities management such that it would encourage students to have opportunities to learn, collect data, understand, and reflection which connects with networks.  Related factors are to be able to learn in anytime and anywhere, according to lifelong learning and inter-disciplinary learning.