Public health competencies self-reflection

 **Practicum at Saratoga Hospital**

First, review the six course competencies carefully. Reflect on the  past nine weeks at your practicum site, study of the activities, and  projects you have worked on during your practicum, and consider how you  have grown as a public health scholar and practitioner. 

1. Discuss the public health needs and capacities of the population served by your practicum agency.       
   • Define public health needs and capacities.
2. Discuss how you have applied a socioecological framework to the  development of population-based intervention strategies to improve  health and reduce inequities for the population you are serving.      
   • Define the ecological framework.
   • Describe how you would apply an ecological framework to the development and implementation of population-based interventions.
3. Analyze the insights gained concerning gender, race, poverty,  history, migration, and culture when working toward health equity at  organizational, community, and societal levels.      
   • Discuss how these determinants undermine health and create challenges.
   • Discuss inclusive ways to achieve health equity at organizational, community, and societal levels.
4. Differentiate among availability, acceptability, and accessibility of health care across diverse populations.      
   • Describe how the population your agency serves is accessing  health care and services, accepting the services available, and is  willing to make behavioral changes.
   • Describe potential ways to improve the current state.
5. Compare your practicum agency to other agencies in terms of structure, systems, and public health practices.      
   • Define the agency structure, systems, and public health practices.
   • Provide examples of the agency structure, systems, and public health practices.
6. Explain how professional ethics and practices relate to equity and accountability in diverse community settings.      
   • Discuss how your own professional ethics have helped improve health equity for the populations served at your practicum site.
   • Identify ways to improve your knowledge, ethics, and practices to better serve diverse communities and populations.
7. Analyze the systems-thinking or building tools you have used at your practicum site.      
   • Define systems-thinking or building tools.
   • Describe how you have employed these tools to influence the  community’s health behaviors to address health disparities or public  health concerns.
   • Describe other tools you would like to use.
   • Describe how use of these tools would benefit the community.