Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya

Jepngetich Hellen; Nyamwange Caleb; Baliddawa Joyce; Karani Anna

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya

Jepngetich Hellen, Nyamwange Caleb, Baliddawa Joyce, Karani Anna

Published in American Journal of Health Research (Volume 6, Issue 3)

Received: 13 June 2018 Accepted: 9 July 2018 Published: 15 August 2018

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Abstract

Background: Public Health workforce faces varied challenges ranging from workforce shortages to debates on relevance and the adequacy of their training. This is particularly true to graduates undertaking Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health (BSc EVH) because of the wide areas in the job market that they can be absorbed into. Consequently there are concerns of mismatch between the academic training and their job market demands and expectation which hinge on the preparedness of these graduates to handle public health activities and obligations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the graduates’ preparedness to handle emerging public health concerns. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design employing both quantitative and qualitative methods was done from September 2016 to April 2017. The graduates were stratified by year of graduation and a total of 229 were randomly recruited into the study. The participants were interviewed using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. An interviewer guide was also used to further interrogate graduates. Data was analyzed for proportions and associations using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Among 188 graduates that completed the questionnaires, 79 (42%) were aged 25-34 years, 71(37.8%) aged 35-44 years, 29(15.4%) aged 45 -54 and 9(4.8%) were ≤25 years. More than half (111(59%) of the graduates were males. All graduates were distributed over more than 12 public health career areas. On preparedness, 123 (65.4%) perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health challenges whereas 65 (34.6%) said that they were unprepared. Among those who reported that they were prepared, there was a higher median competence score compared to those who opined that they were not prepared (2.93 vs 2.79, Z=2.472 and p=0.013). A unit increase in the competence score indicates increased chance of being prepared by 10.6% (OR; 1.106; 95% CI: 1.042-1.174, p=0.001). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that majority of the graduates perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health concerns though a significant 34.6% felt that they were inadequately prepared. Therefore the depth of specific course content and implementation is still an area of concern to graduates. Recommendation: Forge and strengthen collaborations between the training institutions and the practitioner organizations to tailor graduate training to industry requirements.

Published in	American Journal of Health Research (Volume 6, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
Page(s)	74-78
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Preparedness, Perceptions, Emerging Public Health Concerns, Environmental Health Graduate

References

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APA Style

Jepngetich Hellen, Nyamwange Caleb, Baliddawa Joyce, Karani Anna. (2018). Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. American Journal of Health Research, 6(3), 74-78. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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ACS Style

Jepngetich Hellen; Nyamwange Caleb; Baliddawa Joyce; Karani Anna. Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. Am. J. Health Res. 2018, 6(3), 74-78. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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AMA Style

Jepngetich Hellen, Nyamwange Caleb, Baliddawa Joyce, Karani Anna. Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. Am J Health Res. 2018;6(3):74-78. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12,
  author = {Jepngetich Hellen and Nyamwange Caleb and Baliddawa Joyce and Karani Anna},
  title = {Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya},
  journal = {American Journal of Health Research},
  volume = {6},
  number = {3},
  pages = {74-78},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  abstract = {Background: Public Health workforce faces varied challenges ranging from workforce shortages to debates on relevance and the adequacy of their training. This is particularly true to graduates undertaking Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health (BSc EVH) because of the wide areas in the job market that they can be absorbed into. Consequently there are concerns of mismatch between the academic training and their job market demands and expectation which hinge on the preparedness of these graduates to handle public health activities and obligations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the graduates’ preparedness to handle emerging public health concerns. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design employing both quantitative and qualitative methods was done from September 2016 to April 2017. The graduates were stratified by year of graduation and a total of 229 were randomly recruited into the study. The participants were interviewed using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. An interviewer guide was also used to further interrogate graduates. Data was analyzed for proportions and associations using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Among 188 graduates that completed the questionnaires, 79 (42%) were aged 25-34 years, 71(37.8%) aged 35-44 years, 29(15.4%) aged 45 -54 and 9(4.8%) were ≤25 years. More than half (111(59%) of the graduates were males. All graduates were distributed over more than 12 public health career areas. On preparedness, 123 (65.4%) perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health challenges whereas 65 (34.6%) said that they were unprepared. Among those who reported that they were prepared, there was a higher median competence score compared to those who opined that they were not prepared (2.93 vs 2.79, Z=2.472 and p=0.013). A unit increase in the competence score indicates increased chance of being prepared by 10.6% (OR; 1.106; 95% CI: 1.042-1.174, p=0.001). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that majority of the graduates perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health concerns though a significant 34.6% felt that they were inadequately prepared. Therefore the depth of specific course content and implementation is still an area of concern to graduates. Recommendation: Forge and strengthen collaborations between the training institutions and the practitioner organizations to tailor graduate training to industry requirements.},
 year = {2018}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya
AU  - Jepngetich Hellen
AU  - Nyamwange Caleb
AU  - Baliddawa Joyce
AU  - Karani Anna
Y1  - 2018/08/15
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
T2  - American Journal of Health Research
JF  - American Journal of Health Research
JO  - American Journal of Health Research
SP  - 74
EP  - 78
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-8796
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
AB  - Background: Public Health workforce faces varied challenges ranging from workforce shortages to debates on relevance and the adequacy of their training. This is particularly true to graduates undertaking Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health (BSc EVH) because of the wide areas in the job market that they can be absorbed into. Consequently there are concerns of mismatch between the academic training and their job market demands and expectation which hinge on the preparedness of these graduates to handle public health activities and obligations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the graduates’ preparedness to handle emerging public health concerns. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design employing both quantitative and qualitative methods was done from September 2016 to April 2017. The graduates were stratified by year of graduation and a total of 229 were randomly recruited into the study. The participants were interviewed using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. An interviewer guide was also used to further interrogate graduates. Data was analyzed for proportions and associations using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Among 188 graduates that completed the questionnaires, 79 (42%) were aged 25-34 years, 71(37.8%) aged 35-44 years, 29(15.4%) aged 45 -54 and 9(4.8%) were ≤25 years. More than half (111(59%) of the graduates were males. All graduates were distributed over more than 12 public health career areas. On preparedness, 123 (65.4%) perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health challenges whereas 65 (34.6%) said that they were unprepared. Among those who reported that they were prepared, there was a higher median competence score compared to those who opined that they were not prepared (2.93 vs 2.79, Z=2.472 and p=0.013). A unit increase in the competence score indicates increased chance of being prepared by 10.6% (OR; 1.106; 95% CI: 1.042-1.174, p=0.001). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that majority of the graduates perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health concerns though a significant 34.6% felt that they were inadequately prepared. Therefore the depth of specific course content and implementation is still an area of concern to graduates. Recommendation: Forge and strengthen collaborations between the training institutions and the practitioner organizations to tailor graduate training to industry requirements.
VL  - 6
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Jepngetich Hellen

Department of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Moi University, Eldoret, Kenya
Nyamwange Caleb

Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Moi University, Eldoret, Kenya
Baliddawa Joyce

Department of Behavioural Sciences and Ethics, School of Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Moi University, Eldoret, Kenya
Karani Anna

Department of Nursing, College of Health Sciences, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

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APA Style

Jepngetich Hellen, Nyamwange Caleb, Baliddawa Joyce, Karani Anna. (2018). Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. American Journal of Health Research, 6(3), 74-78. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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ACS Style

Jepngetich Hellen; Nyamwange Caleb; Baliddawa Joyce; Karani Anna. Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. Am. J. Health Res. 2018, 6(3), 74-78. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

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AMA Style

Jepngetich Hellen, Nyamwange Caleb, Baliddawa Joyce, Karani Anna. Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya. Am J Health Res. 2018;6(3):74-78. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12,
  author = {Jepngetich Hellen and Nyamwange Caleb and Baliddawa Joyce and Karani Anna},
  title = {Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya},
  journal = {American Journal of Health Research},
  volume = {6},
  number = {3},
  pages = {74-78},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajhr.20180603.12},
  abstract = {Background: Public Health workforce faces varied challenges ranging from workforce shortages to debates on relevance and the adequacy of their training. This is particularly true to graduates undertaking Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health (BSc EVH) because of the wide areas in the job market that they can be absorbed into. Consequently there are concerns of mismatch between the academic training and their job market demands and expectation which hinge on the preparedness of these graduates to handle public health activities and obligations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the graduates’ preparedness to handle emerging public health concerns. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design employing both quantitative and qualitative methods was done from September 2016 to April 2017. The graduates were stratified by year of graduation and a total of 229 were randomly recruited into the study. The participants were interviewed using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. An interviewer guide was also used to further interrogate graduates. Data was analyzed for proportions and associations using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Among 188 graduates that completed the questionnaires, 79 (42%) were aged 25-34 years, 71(37.8%) aged 35-44 years, 29(15.4%) aged 45 -54 and 9(4.8%) were ≤25 years. More than half (111(59%) of the graduates were males. All graduates were distributed over more than 12 public health career areas. On preparedness, 123 (65.4%) perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health challenges whereas 65 (34.6%) said that they were unprepared. Among those who reported that they were prepared, there was a higher median competence score compared to those who opined that they were not prepared (2.93 vs 2.79, Z=2.472 and p=0.013). A unit increase in the competence score indicates increased chance of being prepared by 10.6% (OR; 1.106; 95% CI: 1.042-1.174, p=0.001). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that majority of the graduates perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health concerns though a significant 34.6% felt that they were inadequately prepared. Therefore the depth of specific course content and implementation is still an area of concern to graduates. Recommendation: Forge and strengthen collaborations between the training institutions and the practitioner organizations to tailor graduate training to industry requirements.},
 year = {2018}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Preparedness Perceptions of Environmental Health Graduates in Handling Emerging Public Health Concerns in Kenya
AU  - Jepngetich Hellen
AU  - Nyamwange Caleb
AU  - Baliddawa Joyce
AU  - Karani Anna
Y1  - 2018/08/15
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
T2  - American Journal of Health Research
JF  - American Journal of Health Research
JO  - American Journal of Health Research
SP  - 74
EP  - 78
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-8796
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20180603.12
AB  - Background: Public Health workforce faces varied challenges ranging from workforce shortages to debates on relevance and the adequacy of their training. This is particularly true to graduates undertaking Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Health (BSc EVH) because of the wide areas in the job market that they can be absorbed into. Consequently there are concerns of mismatch between the academic training and their job market demands and expectation which hinge on the preparedness of these graduates to handle public health activities and obligations. Aim: The purpose of this study was to assess the graduates’ preparedness to handle emerging public health concerns. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design employing both quantitative and qualitative methods was done from September 2016 to April 2017. The graduates were stratified by year of graduation and a total of 229 were randomly recruited into the study. The participants were interviewed using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire. An interviewer guide was also used to further interrogate graduates. Data was analyzed for proportions and associations using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: Among 188 graduates that completed the questionnaires, 79 (42%) were aged 25-34 years, 71(37.8%) aged 35-44 years, 29(15.4%) aged 45 -54 and 9(4.8%) were ≤25 years. More than half (111(59%) of the graduates were males. All graduates were distributed over more than 12 public health career areas. On preparedness, 123 (65.4%) perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health challenges whereas 65 (34.6%) said that they were unprepared. Among those who reported that they were prepared, there was a higher median competence score compared to those who opined that they were not prepared (2.93 vs 2.79, Z=2.472 and p=0.013). A unit increase in the competence score indicates increased chance of being prepared by 10.6% (OR; 1.106; 95% CI: 1.042-1.174, p=0.001). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that majority of the graduates perceived to be prepared to handle emerging public health concerns though a significant 34.6% felt that they were inadequately prepared. Therefore the depth of specific course content and implementation is still an area of concern to graduates. Recommendation: Forge and strengthen collaborations between the training institutions and the practitioner organizations to tailor graduate training to industry requirements.
VL  - 6
IS  - 3
ER  -

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