Promoting, supporting and advancing healthier lifestyles and communities
Mission
The Office of Public Health Education encourages educational, behavioral, environmental and societal changes that support, promote and improve individual, group and community health. The office uses well-accepted, theory-based approaches.
Public health education has been a recognized professional discipline within the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control for 30 years. Public health education specialists work at the regional and central office level. They practice in clinics and the community at large and also serve as DHEC program consultants.
Role
The Office of Public Health Education’s primary role is to support and develop quality health education practices. The approaches are used by DHEC public health educators in teaching citizens about a wide variety of health care topics. The office organizes health education specialists to:
- establish standards of practice, monitor performance, and take actions to assure quality
- assess staff development and training needs and create plans for meeting those needs
- provide consultation and technical assistance to districts, programs, and agency decision makers regarding personnel and strategic and operational planning, and
- collaborate with other public health education professionals and public health organizations at the state and national level to advance public health education.
Senior level health education specialists provide staff support to three standing committees:
- Professional Practice
- Workforce Development
- Marketing
What Is Health Education All About?
Achieving the nation’s health objectives, Healthy People 2010 will depend on many factors. It will require a strong system of assessment and surveillance of public health problems. It will depend on increased capacity and infrastructure for public health. It will also require the delivery of well developed health promotion and disease prevention interventions. Lifestyle and behavior changes are key factors for addressing many of the health problems facing the citizens of South Carolina. Interventions should be uniquely tailored to address the circumstances of a given population, person, and situation. Prevention makes good economic sense, paying returns in improved health and reduced health care costs.
Health educators encourage and help devise individual, group, institutional, community, and systemic strategies to improve health knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behavior among the population at large. Special competencies are required to deliver quality health education interventions. The office utilizes professional preparation standards for each health education classification level.
Seven basic areas of responsibility are outlined by the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing Inc. and the Office of Public Health Education. Public health educators are to:
- Assess individual and community needs for health education
- Plan health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Implement health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Conduct evaluation and research related to health education
- Administer health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Serve as health education resource persons, and
- Communicate and advocate for health and health education.