One of my classes this semester is Public Health Issues for Healthcare Executives. This class exposes my classmates and I to a broad range of public health topics and how they affect the roles of healthcare executives. Some of the topics that are included throughout the semester are the US public health system, emergency preparedness, cultural diversity, spirituality, SANE program, and more.
In order to learn about such a broad range of topics, speakers who work within these areas come to our class and share their experiences with us. So far we have had two speakers visit. We have had a Public Health Overview discussion and a speaker on Socioeconomic, Multicultural Diversity Issues in Healthcare.
One of the great things about this class is that it gives my classmates and I exposure to public health issues which we may otherwise have little exposure or experience with. By being able to learn about them directly from individuals who are working within these areas, we can see first hand what challenges these issues can create for a community of people. In addition to this, we are also able to see how these issues may affect our roles as healthcare administrators. Not only are we able to see and understand what challenges we may face, but we are also able to understand how we can use our roles to better the communities in which we work.
Although I think it is important for us to learn about healthcare policy, finance, regulations, and more details that can be learned in a traditional classroom setting, receiving first hand information about public health issues which we may encounter during our residencies and as we begin our careers is incredibly valuable. We will all learn a great deal during our residencies, but this class equips us with a glimpse of some of the issues that the community we are working in may be struggling with.
Erin