Public Health Skills and
Career Framework
Overview
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Why have a Public Health Skills and
Career Framework (PHSCF)?
What is its purpose?
What does it look like?
On what principles it is based?
Who is it for?
When will it be available?
Why have a PHSCF?
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inform skills and career development of everyone
who contributes to improving and protecting the
health and wellbeing of the population
develop a skilled public health workforce that is fit for
purpose to tackle health inequalities and deliver the
national public health agenda
provide a consistent and coherent vision across the
whole of public health, value everyone’s contribution
and the interactions between those contributions
What its purpose?
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to identify a pathway for skills and career progression, vertically
or horizontally - individuals
to assess the competence and/or gaps in competence in a
workforce - managers
to inform the nature and type of learning and development
needed at different stages and in different areas of public health
- education and training providers
to inform the services, education and training that people are
trying to bring into effect - commissioners
to ensure that there are appropriate progression routes and no
artificial barriers to progression - designers of education,
training, regulation and workforce planning.
What does it look like?
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Areas - 9 areas of public health - 4 core and 5
defined areas
Levels - 9 levels from initial entry level to the most
senior posts in organisations
Competences & knowledge - descriptions of the main
competences and knowledge that would be required
to work at that level
Links to national occupational standards and the
NHS KSF - for information
Sections under development - training and
qualifications, registration, examples of application
and examples of roles
Examples of roles
UNDER
CONSTRUCTION Р
not for consultation
Example of Application
Registration
Training
Training &
& qualifications
qualifications
Know ledge
CAREER
FRAMEWORK
LEVELS
CORE
DEFINED
Health and Social Care Quality
*Ethical Management of Self
LEVEL 1
INITIAL ENTRY
LEVEL JOBS
*Ethical Management of Self is now embedded within the Core Area
s
Academic Public Health
LEVEL 3
SNR HEALTHCARE
ASSTS/TECHNICIA
NS
LEVEL 2
SUPPORT
WORKERS
Public Health Intelligence
LEVEL 4
ASST/ASSOCIATE
PRACTITIONERS
Health Protection
LEVEL 5
PRACTITIONERS
Health Improvement
LEVEL 6
SNR / SPECIALIST
PRACTITIONERS
Leadership and collaborative working for health
LEVEL
LEVEL
77
ADVANCED
ADVANCED
PRACTITIONERS
PRACTITIONERS
Policy and strategy development and implementation
LEVEL 8
CONSULTANT
PRACTITIONERS
Assessing the evidence of effectiveness of health and healthcare
interventions, programmes and services
LEVEL 9
MORE SENIOR
STAFF
Surveillance and assessment of the population Хs health and well - being
Framework
layout
COMPETENCES
On what principles is it based?
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The levels are cumulative
The statements of competence and knowledge
capture the nature of working at that level
To be working at a specific level in a defined area
means meeting the competence and knowledge
statements within that area plus the competence and
knowledge statements in the four core areas
Public health values and ethical management of self
are embedded in the core areas / underpin the whole
framework
Who is it for?
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individuals who recognise their role in
improving and protecting the health and
wellbeing of the population – public health
professionals
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individuals who contribute to improving and
protecting the health and wellbeing of the
population – participants in public health
Who is it for?
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those currently in a post - in a wide range of different
work areas and in a wide number of different
organisations or agencies
those wishing to develop their skills and/or a career in
public health
those who are interested in developing and acquiring
competences and knowledge about improving and
protecting the health and wellbeing of the population
those who plan and develop the public health
workforce locally, regionally and nationally
How was it developed?
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Commissioned by DH England, supported by
other 3 UK Health Departments
Joint work between Skills for Health, UK
Voluntary Register, PH Resource Unit and the
Informing Healthier Choices Strategy Group
Series of workshops across the UK
Informed by other related developments
When will it be available?
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Current version is the piloting and
consultation version - welcome feedback and
suggestions for improvement by Friday 21
September 2007 at latest
Final version to be approved in October 2007
and published shortly afterwards
Widely available through different routes (eg
Skills for Health website)
How can we use it?
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developing individuals’ skills and career vertically or horizontally
assessing the competence and/or gaps in
competence in your workforce
developing learning programmes
informing the commissioning of services and /
or learning
planning learning, accreditation, regulation or
workforce planning.