SCHOOL OF HEALTH SCIENCES
COLLEGE OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
1999-2000 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT REPORT
Background
The School of Health Sciences offers a wide variety of programs at the undergraduate and
graduate levels, including the following:
Undergraduate Programs
Community Health Services
Long-Term Health Care Administration
Health Services Administration
Environmental Health Sciences
Industrial Hygiene
Graduate Program
Master of Health Administration
Due to the fact that each program area is unique, it is somewhat difficult to discuss assessment
procedures and outcomes from a departmental or school perspective. In fact, the goals for
student learning vary according to program area and there has been considerable effort put forth
to decentralize assessment activities within the School of Health Sciences. Nevertheless, there
are some consistencies and similarities between program assessment activities and this report
will focus on these specific areas.
Overview of Outcome Assessment Procedures
The following is a comprehensive list of instruments, methods, and processes used to assess
student learning during 1999-2000:

Feedback/input from program advisory committees.

Feedback/input from accreditation bodies.

Review of program enrollment trends.

Completion of student evaluations of course and course instructor. This assessment
includes open-ended comment sheets.

Ongoing review of performance by students and graduates on licensure and
qualifying professional examinations.

Evaluated student performance in their internships, practica, and other field
experiences. The evaluation included three different reviews, one from the student's
perspective, one from the faculty's perspective, and finally, one from the worksite
preceptor's perspective.

Conducted the annual student advisement evaluation.
These assessment activities remain relatively unchanged from 1998-1999. The one area for
added focus over the next year is alumni feedback/input. Program areas are planning surveys to
obtain valuable information from recent graduates.
Synopsis of Outcomes/Summary of Changes to Procedures and/or Curriculum
Feedback/input from program advisory committees
Program advisory committees are used for three primary reasons:
1. To conduct ongoing review of the curriculum and program goals.
2. To keep the programs grounded in reality, making them relevant to the practitioner
community.
3. To facilitate internship placement and enhance job opportunities for program graduates.
All advisory committees met twice during the 1999-2000 year. The following programs have
active program advisory committees:
Industrial Hygiene
Environmental Health Sciences
Long-Term Health Care Administration
Health Services Administration
The Community Health Services area is the only program area without an active advisory
committee. One of their goals for this year is to develop such a board.
Advisory committees continue to play a critical role in assessing program areas. During 19992000, several new courses were developed, processed and approved through the university's
curriculum system based upon advisory board recommendations. For example, the graduate
program added courses focusing on health law, information systems, research methods and
managed care. The Long-Term Health Care Program added courses focusing on assisted living
and other community long-term care services.
Feedback/input from accreditation bodies
The Long-Term Health Care Program has been approved by the National Association of Boards
of Examiners for Long-Term Health Care Administrators (NAB). One of the findings identified
through NAB's assessment mechanisms was a need for students to have more reimbursement
information which related specifically to the long-term care area. As such, a new course is being
developed to address this curriculum need.
The Environmental Health Sciences Program is accredited by the National Environmental Health
Science and Protection Accreditation Council. This group made a re-accreditation site visit
during 1998. Their concerns were addressed and accreditation of the Environmental Health
Science Program at Ohio University has been extended for the maximum possible period of four
additional years until June of 2004.
The accrediting body for the Industrial Hygiene Program is the Related Accreditation
Commission (RAC) of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The
Industrial Hygiene Program submitted a progress report during January of 2000. Based upon the
results of this progress report, program accreditation was extended to September 30, 2004.
The accrediting body for the Graduate Program in Health Administration is the Accrediting
Commission on Education for Health Services Administration (ACEHSA), which is affiliated
with the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA). The graduate
program has progressed from pre-candidate to candidate status and is currently attempting to
designate 2001-2002 as their self-study year.
Review of program enrollment trends.
All programs in the School of Health Sciences appear to be in a downward trend in terms of
number of majors. As such, all programs are considering marketing strategies and plans in an
effort to turn these numbers around. For example, the Industrial Hygiene Program is updating its
web site and faculty are contemplating the development of on-line courses. The Master of
Health Administration Program is starting to market to existing Ohio University students.
Program information was displayed and distributed throughout the campus area. In addition,
program information was distributed through electronic list serves within the College of Health
and Human Services as well as the College of Business and College of Communication.
Completion of student evaluations
Student evaluation data have continued to be positive regarding classroom experiences. Overall,
our students are quite satisfied with the quality of their professors, their preparation, their
enthusiasm, their knowledge base, and their approach to students. Faculty within the School
received above average to excellent ratings in the three categories evaluated; instructional
delivery, instructional design, and course management. This type of evaluation is an indicator
that students are acquiring basic knowledge in health sciences and in their specific program
areas. When problem areas are identified, the School Director discusses these issues with
individual faculty members.
Performance on licensure examinations
Students in one of our programs, Long-Term Health Care Administration, must sit for a licensure
examination in order to become a nursing home administrator. During the last year, our students
had a pass rate of over 60% for first time test takers. Of those programs with ten or more test
takers (7 schools), we had the second highest pass rate. Approximately 90% of students pass
after the second administration.
Some of the curriculum changes discussed earlier in this report should provide students with
additional knowledge and information which may enhance the overall pass rate for this particular
examination.
Evaluated student performance in internships, etc.
Evaluation of external experiences is a three part evaluation. All the parties involved, including
faculty, student, and preceptor, evaluate the experience. Each student either completes an
evaluation form or writes a one to two page synopsis of their external experience. The synopsis
includes feedback about the overall quality and learning in the experience, evaluates the
preceptor's involvement and assistance, and evaluates the faculty advisors involvement and
assistance. Faculty are required to evaluate student projects and to assess daily logs or journals
from the experience. Faculty are in regular contact with the student and preceptor to monitor the
experience throughout. The preceptors evaluate the students on-the-job performance as if they
were regular employees of the organization. Preceptors complete a comprehensive evaluation
form concerning each individual student. Faculty members use this combination of data to
determine the student's grade for the experience. In addition, several other things are evaluated
from this data. First of all, not all internship sites provide the quality of experience our students
deserve. The data assists the Director and faculty in making this judgment. Occasionally, a
preceptor is just not ideal for what we need to accomplish. The data assists us in making these
assessments. Also, the data help us in guiding new and current preceptors and internship sites in
how to get the most out of the internship situation. We learn what it takes for these experiences
to be successful, and pass that along to others who are, or eventually become involved. Our goal
is to create a win-win-win situation. The student wins with a superb external experience, the
institution/agency wins with an able individual who accomplishes something for them, and the
School wins by developing an excellent internship site which may turn into job opportunities for
our students.
During 1999-2000, over 150 external placements were secured. The vast majority of these
placements generate positive feedback from students and preceptors. However, some issues
have been raised (stipend needs, faculty assistance with placement, etc.) which are currently
being reviewed by faculty and program areas. Most of the data indicates that students have
acquired a basic knowledge in health sciences and within their specific program areas.
Annual student advising evaluations
Data from the annual student advisement forms for Spring Quarter of 2000 show evidence of
success. With one exception, the results were quite favorable. One faculty member will be
asked to improve his/her advising activities (based upon this analysis) during his/her annual
performance review. One program area appeared to have a communication problem between
students and advisors as well as between advisors. As such, this program area will begin group
advising sessions in January of 2001.
Changes in Program Goals or Objectives
There have been several changes in individual program goals or objectives based upon
assessment activities. For example, all programs have some form of marketing or recruiting goal
for 2000-2001. Several program areas also have goals focusing on issues pertaining to
internships or external experiences (discussed earlier). One program area is focusing on
improving communication among faculty, particularly in terms of advising information. Finally,
several program areas are planning minor curriculum changes based upon feedback from
accrediting bodies and advisory committees.