EPID 887: Practicum II - Community Agency Placement

• Introduction
• Prerequisites
• Objectives
• Evaluation
• Practicum and Placement Process

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Introduction

EPID 887 is the summer practicum component of the Masters in Public Health program and offers students the opportunity to put into practice all competencies acquired in the first year of courses.  The student will learn in real situations how public health practice is performed in Canada, and in some cases, internationally. The practicum will have a total duration of 16 weeks (roughly May to August 2012) with a full-time intensity (minimum 25 hours per week in practicum placements or more time according to practicum placement requirements).  

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Prerequisites

The practicum starts only when the student has successfully completed: EPID 801: Introduction to Epidemiology, EPID 821: Basic Statistics for Epidemiologists, EPID 812: Program Evaluation, EPID 825: Foundations of Public Health Practice, and EPID 828: Infectious Diseases. 

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Objectives

The main objective of the practicum is to familiarize the student with public health practice in Canada (or in an international context) through his/her active participation in a public health organization, program or group.  The practicum will also complement the competencies developed by an MPH student at Queen’s University through the elaboration of a public health project.  Upon completion of the practicum the student is expected to be able to:

Use basic concepts in public health practice for different purposes (e.g. surveillance, health assessment, health promotion, health protection, health organization, or public health evaluation)
Respond to a public health problem or issue relevant to the sponsoring organization• Explain the structure, role and function of public health agencies or organizations
Apply ethical dimensions related to public health practice in his/her own practice
Show evidence of communication competencies in promoting public health (e.g. advocate for public health programs or policies), both written and oral
Undertake public health practice that recognizes the cultural values, traditions and diversity of communities• Demonstrate leadership, transparency, integrity and honesty in all actions.

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Evaluation

EPID887 is evaluated on a pass/fail basis with a minimum mark of 70% constituting a pass.

  Students will:

Complete and submit a practicum description form that is signed by themselves and their preceptor(s) within the first 2 weeks of the practicum
Complete and submit a one-paragraph general description of their practicum for the Department.
Complete and submit a formative evaluation with their preceptor at the half-way point of the placement.
Complete and submit a summative evaluation with their preceptor at the end point of the placement (this makes up 20% of the overall grade).
Complete a brief oral presentation and poster outlining the major outcomes, outputs or results of the practicum together these make up a further 40% of the grade).
Complete a 25-page written report of the practicum to be submitted to the Department by September 30 (this makes up the remaining 40% of the grade).

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Practicum Placement Process

In September all incoming students will be given a list of practicum placements that were undertaken by the previous year’s MPH students. This will give them an introduction to the kinds of placements that are appropriate for EPID887. The Practicum Coordinator will hold a meeting in the early part of the Fall semester to explain the practicum placement process and answer any questions.

The Practicum Coordinator will provide a list of placements that have been established for MPH students by the Department through its partners on March 15. This list will include placements in Kingston, Belleville and the surrounding area. In the past, students have had options to be placed in many different types of projects hosted by such organizations as:

New partnerships continue to be built and each year the exact placements will vary. There will be more than enough placements, and diversity of placements, organized by the Department for all students in the class. Students will have one week to review the list and submit their top three choices for placement, with a paragraph describing reasons for their choice. If more than one student applies for the same placement as their first choice, all applicants will be asked whether they wish to take any of their subsequent choices (if they are available). If not, the students will submit a cover letter and brief resume to the proposed preceptor and the preceptor will make the decision. Students who were not selected will be placed based on their order of preference and the placements that remain available from the original list. At this time, none of the placements organized by the Department are paid, however any available stipends will be clearly listed on March 15.

Students are permitted to set up their own praticum placements if they wish. These can be paid or unpaid placements. All proposed placements have to be reviewed and approved by the Practicum Coordinator prior to April 15. 

Students may wish to apply for the various placement competitions at:

The Practicum Coordinator will also let the class know if they hear of any other placements that they can apply for. In addition, while the Practicum Coordinator will not organize placements outside of the list that will be posted on March 15th, students can get a letter of support from the Practicum Coordinator if they would like to use this as they seek out their own placements. Students are encouraged to meet with the Practicum Coordinator during the Fall semester to discuss their interests and review possible options for EPID887. Any questions should be directed towards the Practicum Coordinator.