HEA 650-01 (6 credits)

Community Health Internship/Practicum

Department of Public Health Education

2nd Semester, 2004-2005 Academic Year

 

 

 

Instructor:

 

Robert Strack, Ph.D., MBA, Assistant Professor

Department of Public Health Education

437 HEHP Building

Greensboro, NC 27402

336-334-3239

rstrack@uncg.edu

 

Location:

TBA

Time:

TBA/On-Line

Prerequisites:

HEA 648

For whom planned:

The Internship serves as the capstone experience for graduate students in the MPH program.

 

Course Description:

 

Catalog Description: Supervised experience in the observation, delivery, and evaluation of health education services in community settings.  May be repeated once for credit (Graded on S-U basis) (SP).

 

Expanded Description: The internship experience, combined with tasks/activities of this course, is designed to help students synthesize and integrate community health education knowledge, theory and principles in a practice setting. Our aim is to study and advance our understanding of health education as it is practiced in the field and to provide a forum for critiquing and improving health education practice.

Teaching Strategies:

Direct experience, electronic discussion forums, student portfolio development (electronic), development of poster presentations, writing papers.

 

Philosophy:

This course is designed allow students to apply their graduate coursework to a field placement setting.  It is intended that student will embark on a field placement experience that benefits their placement organization and thereby provide a direct learning experience.  While guidance will be provided through faculty and preceptor input primary responsibility for maximizing this experience falls with each student.

 

 

 

Student Learning Outcomes:

 

 

The following are the Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) for this course.

At the end of this course, you should be able to:

 

1.      Synthesize and integrate knowledge gained through the academic program.

2.      Apply community health education theory, principles, knowledge, skills, research and ethics in a professional practice setting.

3.      Evaluate and critique both current practice as observed and theory.

4.      Conduct needs assessment, intervention development, implementation, and/or program evaluation.

5.      Develop a public presentation of their work.

6.     Critically evaluate their weaknesses and strengths as health educators.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Grading:

The internship is graded on a S-U basis for satisfactory (pass) or unsatisfactory (fail).  In order to receive a passing grade, all of the course activities must be satisfactorily completed.

Readings:

Required Textbooks:  None

Readings:  Any readings will be announced through the on-line discussion of the course.  Some of the readings will be made available through UNCG’s library system.  Students are expected to have completed the required reading assignments as part of participating in the discussions of the class.

 

Assignments and Requirements:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In order to receive a passing grade, all of the following must be satisfactorily completed:

 

1.      Class time:  In person class time (on campus) will be held on an as needed basis.  If you are experiencing issues that are hindering the progress of your internship it is your responsibility to notify and arrange a meeting with the instructor.

 

2.      Internship Log of Hours and Activities: (SLO 1-4).  You will need to spend a minimum of 180 hours working on your planned Internship.  Download the “Internship Log” document from Blackboard.  Once you pull down the file use it to keep a log of your hours and activities.   Post your Internship Logs each Monday in the Blackboard system.  Please continue to add to the previous report so that you have a cumulative record of your time and activities. When you save your Internship Log save it using the following format:

      • Internship Log -your name-date
      • For instance I would post mine as

Ø      ‘Internship Log- Bob Strack-2-7-2005’

 

3.      On-line Class discussions (SLO 1,3,6): We will have a few discussions on-line through the discussion board functions of Blackboard.  Participation is not only expected, but required for the internship process.  You are expected to contribute your internship observations/experiences as well as learn and reflect on the experiences of others.  In the Documents area of BB I have posted information sheet(s) on how to use this feature of BB.  If you are unfamiliar with the Discussion function of BB pull down this sheet and review it.

 I will be posting a discussion question to which you will be responsible for two things:

1.      you will be expected to address the question posted in the discussion forum (for which there will be a one week deadline) and

2.      you will be expected to respond to/comment on/ reflect on at least two of your fellow classmate’s posts (for which there will be an additional one week deadline). 

The purpose of these discussion forums is to create a on-line environment (meeting place) where we can understand our own internships as well as learn from the experiences of others.  The quality of this experience will largely be dictated by the level of sharing each of us provides.

 

4.      Mid-project meeting (SLO 6):  You need to facilitate a mid-project meeting with your preceptor and your instructor; this meeting needs to take place in February or March. If your Internship is located far away we can substitute a conference call.  During this meeting, we can identify any challenges that are hindering progress or that are barriers to a rewarding Internship experience. We can then plan for how you can complete your Internship on time and task. After the meeting, you may want to revise your contract to reflect any changes in the timeline or scope of work. Then you will complete a mid-project meeting evaluation form that reflects our discussion and any changes.

 

5.      Poster Presentation (SLO 5): This professional poster presentation will be done in the style of a professional conference (i.e., APHA, SOPHE).  You and your classmates should be prepared to present the results of your internship during a Internship Poster Presentation Exhibit which will be scheduled to occur during the last two weeks of the semester.  I encourage everyone to schedule their internship activities effectively to allow for adequate time to prepare for their internship exhibit.   The poster should include the following elements: title w/ name; purpose; background/significance; methods/approach; for interventions the implementation component (activities, w/ photos if possible, attendance/participation), for needs assessment/evaluation the results, conclusions, and recommendations for future practice/research/policy. You should also have a one page handout summarizing your project.

Please plan on arriving a minimum of 30 minutes before the beginning of the exhibit to allow adequate time to set up your poster.  We will be hosting the graduate and undergraduate presentations at the same time as well as Internship posters from students from the ESS program.  The event will be held on Monday, May 2nd from 3:30-5:30pm in the Cone Ballroom of the Elliot Center.  We would like to create a buzz about the kinds of great things our students are doing and will be sending out announcements of the event to the larger UNCG community.  Further information will be given later. 

 

6.      Portfolio (SLO 5): This is a professional “notebook” that consists of the materials you generated during your internship as well as some surveys you and your preceptor will be asked to fill out.  This year you will be asked to submit your portfolio electronically through Blackboard.  Please put your portfolio in the following order: title page (see Attachment 2); table of contents; Internship description for PHE department; resume; learning plan and agreement; program plan; implementation and analysis paper; reflection paper; internship log; your internship self-evaluation; your site preceptor’s evaluation of you; and any other documents you wish to include (e.g., brochures, PSA’s; photographs; or educational materials. This is due Thursday, May 5th by 12 midnight.

6.1.   Implementation and Analysis Paper (SLOs 1-6).  This paper must be a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 15 double-spaced typed pages (+ attachments). This paper includes the following:

a.            for those conducting a needs assessment describe the data collection process analysis, results and recommendations for the intervention/program;  for those implementing an intervention, describe the implementation process, what happened, what you learned about the problem from the process, how successful you believe the intervention was/will be (and why), and what recommendations you have for this intervention in the future; for those conducting an evaluation, discuss the data collection process, the results and recommendations for the intervention/program in the future;

b.           revise your conceptual model to reflect what you have learned about the problem from experience, writing an explanation of how this differs you’re your earlier model.

c.            revise your SWOT analysis. For this analysis you will describe, as an insider, the internal weaknesses and strengths, and external threats and opportunities and discuss how this differs from your earlier analysis. 

6.2.   Reflection Paper (SLO 3, 6): The purpose of this paper is for you to reflect on your Internship experience and synthesize your successes, challenges and recommendations.  It should be no longer than five (5) pages double-spaced, in 12-point font, Times New Roman. The report should include the following sections:

a.            Reflect on the goals you set out for yourself: in hindsight, do you think this was a good goal for you? Why or why not? How well did you achieve this goal? How do you know? Did your goals change during the Internship? Please elaborate, telling why and how they changed and showing how you met new goals. What do you think were your main accomplishments during the Internship? What are the things of which you are most proud?

b.           Reflect on what you have learned about being a health educator. Have you made some significant discoveries about your technical and professional skills, your interpersonal skills, your values, and your interests? What are your weaknesses and strengths now as a health educator.

c.            Reflect on whether this experience has led you to reassess any of your personal and professional goals? Explain.

d.           Were there significant problems or obstacles to the successful completion of your Internship? Please describe the problem and analyze the source or cause. What solution(s) did you attempt, and with what success? Was it appropriate for you to seek help from your site preceptor? Did you? Did you get the help you needed? Was it appropriate for you to seek help from your Internship coordinator/advisor? Did you? Did you get the help you needed?

e.            What did you learn about the “realities” of program development, implementation, and/or evaluation during this Internship? In what ways do you think the “reality” is better than the “theory” or classroom learning? In what ways do you think the “reality” is worse than the theory”? 

6.3.   Evaluations (SLO 6): Each student will be responsible for filling out a self-evaluation of their internship.  An evaluation form will also be given to your site preceptor for him/her to evaluate your internship performance.  Both forms are posted in the documents section of BB.  Please retain these documents and place them into your final portfolio.

6.4.   Description of your Internship (SLO 3,5):  We are asking that each student record some brief information about your internship that would assist future MPH students.  Please pull down the “HEA 650 Document #5=Internship Description for PHE Dept” form posted in Blackboard.

 

Internet:

 

The course instructor will be setting up a course homepage utilizing the Blackboard Course Management System for intra-class communications.  This list may be used to inform students of any changes in the course requirements, etc.  It may also be used by students to ask questions of classmates and the instructor, or to further discussions.  If you have any problems with your UNCG email account contact the IT Help desk at 6-TECH from your campus phone (or 336-256-TECH off campus).  It is your responsibility to make sure your email account is functioning.

Academic Honor Code:

Please note that this course relies on your adherence to the Academic Integrity Policy (honor code).  Refer to UNCG web site for full listing of UNCG’s Academic Integrity Policy: (http://studentconduct.uncg.edu/policy/academicintegrity)

 

Week of:

Class Meeting

Assignments/Due Dates/Milestones

Jan. 10

 

 

Jan. 17

Jan 20th , Room 347

 

Jan.  24
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Jan. 31

 

Ø       1st On-Line Discussion Question Posted – Wednesday, February 2nd

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Feb. 7
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Feb. 14
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Feb. 21
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Feb. 28
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Mar. 7
SPRING BREAK

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Mar. 14

 

Ø       2nd On-Line Discussion Question Posted – Wednesday, March 16th

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Mar. 21
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Mar. 28
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Apr. 4
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

Apr. 11
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

April 18
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

April 25
 

Ø       Please Post Internship Log in BB each Monday.

May 2

 

Ø     Poster Presentations in Elliot Center at UNCG, 3:30-5:30

Ø     Internship Portfolio Due Thursday, May 5th

May 13,

Friday

 

v  University Wide May Commencement, Greensboro Coliseum 10:00am

v  HHP Graduation Ceremony Friday , May 13, 2005,                                                          2:30 p.m.  Fleming Gym, HHP Building