Are you up for the challenge of a dynamic public health career?
Do you have a passion to make a real difference in the wellbeing of the people in your local, regional or national communities?
Are you commited to acquiring a wide range of knowledge and skills?
Do you value and respect all people regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, education, socio-economic status?
Do you have the existing or the potential, skills to:
- engage with and develop effective working relationships with people, organisations. and communities
- lead public health action into the future
- work with a wide range of other professionals?
What does working in public health actually mean?
Public health is work to improve the health of communities and populations (or sections of the community) and reduce inequalities in health status.
The Ottawa Charter, a global framework used in New Zealand for planning public health strategies, recognises that to improve the health of populations and individuals, there is a need to look wider than just providing health services. Public health work also needs to address the determinants of health.
For instance, if people are to take responsibility for the health of their family and themselves, they need:
- protection from environmental factors that could lead to health risks
- adequate housing
- a liveable income
- employment
- educational opportunities
- a sense of belonging and being valued
- a sense of control over life circumstances.
Public health work can be in the social and physical environments in which we live, in programmes that aim to assist or improve the wellbeing of communities or individuals. For example, immunisation programmes to keep groups of people healthy, screening people to identify early stage disease and to enable more effective treatment, and smoking cessation programmes.
Public health is a diverse and multifaceted career choice. It really is about working for a better future in New Zealand.