Benchmarking for Improving the Master's Program in Public Health

Authors

Keywords:

postgraduate training, master’s degree, public health, benchmarking.

Abstract

Introduction: Postgraduate training in public health is paramount for the development of health services. Only by training professionals with the required quality will it be possible to prevent, address and solve the problems that affect the health of the population.

Objective: To identify good practices applicable to the master's program in Public Health at Escuela Nacional de Salud Pública.

Methods: A descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019-2021, through benchmarking from 50 programs taken as reference. Variables such as study modality and dedication, objectives, graduate´s working profile and taught disciplines, among others, were analyzed. Graduates under that program were consulted for their assessment of the improvement proposals.

Results: In 72 % of the studied programs, the training of public health researchers is proposed as the main objective; while, in 81.39 % of them, the graduate profile includes the ability to use research in public health. Of these, 68.88 % are taught on-site and 80.55% are part-time. The disciplines of Epidemiology, Statistics, Fundamentals of Public Health, Health Policies, Plans and Programs, Health Economics and Research Methodology are present in more than 50 % of the reviewed programs.

Conclusions: The identified good practices, consulted with graduates, provided useful information to be taken into account for their possible incorporation into the current program of Escuela Nacional de Salud Pública.

Author Biography

Liam Machado Bibilonia, Escuela Nacional de Salud Pública

Profesora del Departamento de Dirección en Salud de la Escuela Nacional de Salud Pública. Master en Salud Pública

Published

2025-01-13

Issue

Section

Artículos Originales