Division of Health Policy and Management, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
J Public Health Manag Pract. 2013 Sep-Oct;19(5):412-9. doi: 10.1097/PHH.0b013e31828002d2.
This article reviews the elements consistent with the definition of a "profession" in the contemporary United States and argues that public health should be considered a distinct profession, recognizing that it has a unique knowledge base and career paths independent of any other occupation or profession. The Welch-Rose Report of 1915 prescribed education for public health professionals and assumed that, although at first the majority of students would be drawn from other professions, such as medicine, nursing, and sanitary engineering, public health was on its way to becoming "a new profession." Nearly a century later, the field of public health has evolved dramatically in the direction predicted. It clearly meets the criteria for being a "profession" in that it has (1) a distinct body of knowledge, (2) an educational credential offered by schools and programs accredited by a specialized accrediting body, (3) career paths that include autonomous practice, and (4) a separate credential, Certified in Public Health (CPH), indicative of self-regulation based on the newly launched examination of the National Board of Public Health Examiners. Barriers remain that challenge independent professional status, including the breadth of the field, more than one accrediting body, wide variation in graduate school curricula, and the newness of the CPH. Nonetheless, the benefits of recognizing public health as a distinct profession are considerable, particularly to the practice and policy communities. These include independence in practice, the ability to recruit the next generation, increased influence on health policy, and infrastructure based on a workforce of strong capacity and leadership capabilities.
本文回顾了当代美国符合“职业”定义的要素，并认为公共卫生应该被视为一个独特的专业，承认它有一个独特的知识基础和职业道路，独立于任何其他职业或专业。1915 年的 Welch-Rose 报告为公共卫生专业人员规定了教育要求，并假设，尽管最初大多数学生将来自其他专业，如医学、护理和环境卫生工程，但公共卫生正在成为“一个新的专业”。近一个世纪后，公共卫生领域朝着预测的方向发生了巨大的变化。它显然符合成为“职业”的标准，因为它具有（1）独特的知识体系，（2）由经过专门认证机构认证的学校和项目提供的教育证书，（3）包括自主实践的职业道路，以及（4）单独的证书，公共卫生认证（CPH），表明基于国家公共卫生考试委员会新启动的考试进行自我监管。仍然存在挑战独立专业地位的障碍，包括该领域的广泛性、不止一个认证机构、研究生院课程的广泛差异以及 CPH 的新颖性。尽管如此，承认公共卫生是一个独特的专业的好处是相当可观的，特别是对实践和政策社区。这些好处包括实践中的独立性、招募下一代的能力、对健康政策的更大影响力，以及基于强大能力和领导能力的劳动力的基础设施。
