Integrating Public Health Education: The
Challenges in a Globalising World
Dr Lisa Fitzgerald, Dr Sheleigh Lawler, Dr Chi Wai
Lui, Dr Allyson Mutch, Mr Michael O’Brien,
Dr Lennert Veerman
School of Population Health
The University of Queensland.
Taking an integrated approach in public
health
Why integrate?
Ways of knowing –
moving beyond the
silos
Ways of engaging
– moving our
students towards
different ways of
knowing
Ways of knowing: multidisciplinary or
interdisciplinary?
UQ: Are we doing
enough?
“Multidisciplinarity
draws on knowledge
from different
disciplines but stays
within their
boundaries..”
PH: Should we be moving
beyond multidisciplinary
approaches towards
interdisciplinary models and
if so, what would that actually
look like?
“. An interdisciplinary approach
analyses, synthesizes and
harmonizes links between
disciplines into a coordinated
and coherent whole.”
Ways of knowing:
global or local
perspectives?
UQ: Should we break out of the silos or not?
PH: Given the emphasis on integrating a global
perspective, what does this mean for studying an MPH
in the Australian context?
Ways of engaging: Our context
• Large research intensive university
• 400+ Postgraduate Students - MPH
• 1/3 international
• About half study externally and part time
• Many with medical/allied health backgrounds
• 300+ undergraduates - BHlthSc
•
Future medical practitioners and non-clinical professionals
Ways of Engaging: Active
Classrooms/Interactive Technology?
UQ how do we manage these challenges in
our internal and external classroom? How
do we bring our team with us?
PH: How do we
move students
towards process of
learning
transformation?
Ways of Engaging: Research/Teaching
Integration
The Challenges
• Reflects and makes use of the teacher’s disciplinary
research to benefit students learning and outcomes
• Development of research skills important element of
curriculum design and development
• Adding another research agenda: Scholarship of teaching
and learning
– Improving Teaching Practice
– Student learning outcomes
Barbara Zamorski (2002) Research-led Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: A
case, Teaching in Higher Education, 7:4, 411-427, DOI: 10.1080/135625102760553919
Research -Teaching integration
 Guest lectures/ meet the “expert” sessions
– Collaborative approach to lecture development
– Delivering key content with research examples

Sharing publications, key public health media releases, for up-to-date
literature for teaching
Research
Teaching
 Identification of high quality RHD students
– Designing student projects and dissertations that support/feed into
larger projects
 Student volunteers to support research staff
 Opportunities for RHD student’s skill development in
lecturing and tutoring
PH: How do we
integrate T&R across
the disciplines in public
health to ensure
effective programs?
UQ: How do we expand
research and teaching
Integration across the
school?
Joining ways of knowing and ways of
engaging
Ways of
knowing
Ways of
engaging
Questions for Public Health
•
•
•
•
•
•
Multidisciplinary: Should we be moving beyond multidisciplinary approaches
towards interdisciplinary models and if so, what would that actually look like?
Global: Given the emphasis on integrating a global perspective, what does
this mean for studying an MPH in the Australian context?
Learning transformations: How do we move students towards processes of
learning transformation?
Teaching/Research: How do we integrate T&R across the disciplines in
public health to ensure students understand the processes needed to develop
effective PH programs?
What more can we do to empower and engage our students?
http://padlet.com/charlotte_young/caphiaworkshop