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Summary of Report
This report is in response to a 2005 workshop sponsored by the (then) Public Health Directorate of the Ministry of Health to discuss the concept of a public health multidisciplinary body. The workshop was initiated a part of the development of the Public Health Workforce Development Plan (Te Uru Kahikatea). At the meeting it became clear that interpretations of multidisciplinary models as they relate to public health were subject to considerable variability. This paper is provided to inform the future discussions in this area.
This report discusses multidisciplinary approaches to work in a range of professions, defined as a new way of working that involves the coalescing of disciplines/professions in groups to address an issue or issues.
There is little literature on multidisciplinary models in public health compared to other areas of health service delivery. An exception is the UK Faculty of Public Health, which has opened up its membership to non-doctors.
This paper includes a survey of literature dealing with practical and theoretical perspectives on the concept of the multidisciplinary model and an analysis of the models’ achievements and impacts on the health workforce. Definitions are given, and theoretical and practical issues are identified, including benefits, barriers and wider implications of adopting multidisciplinary approaches. A bibliography of articles and websites is included for further reading.
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