Workforce Development Post-Secondary Internship Program

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MULTNOMAH COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT

Environmental Health

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Workforce

DevelopmentPost-Secondary

Internshi Pro ram


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ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Post-Secondary Internship Program

Environmental Health Office3653 SE 34th Ave., Portland, Oregon 97202Phone 503.988.3400 Fax 503.988.5844

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Table of ContentsIntroduction

Chapter 1The Evolution of your Workforce Development Program

!0 Essential Services Assessment Template

Chapter 2Developing A Post-secondary Internship Program

1. Characteristics of a Model Host Organization2.Building Necessary Partnerships3. Types of Internships

Project Based

Observational

Focused Skill-Based Training4. Program Staffing

Internship Program Planning And Systems Development

Intern Supervisors/Mentors

Marketing Program5. Program Elements For Internships

Application Process

Screening And Matching Students To Internship Experiences

Scope Of Work And Work Plans Internship Period

Intern Orientation

Intern Supervision And Mentorship

Length Of Internship

Evaluation Of The Internship

Chapter 3Internship Program Form Templates

Application

Student QuestionnaireInternship Agreement Form

Orientation Schedule Template

Internship Log Form

Evaluation Form

Sample Student Cover Letter

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Chapter 4Sustainability Of The Program

Sustaining Partnerships

Funding Program

Long-term

Evaluation

Chapter 5Evaluation of this Manual

Evaluation Form


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Sample Faculty Cover Letter

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IntroductionIn an effort to stave off the effects of a retiring workforce and the impacts of limited

curriculum in environmental health at the academic level, Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health developed strategies to hire competent and qualified environmentalhealth personnel. The development of an incoming Environmental Health Specialist

workforce is a critical step to implementing quality environmental health and protection

services by assuring an incoming stream of qualified people. The three-year CDC CapacityBuilding grant received in 2004 has provided the opportunity to improve workforce

developmentby mobilizing educational partnerships with local academic institutions to

develop environmental health internship and training opportunities. The internships arefocused on training and educating students to peak their interest and better prepare them for

the environmental health workforce. Collaborative activities include developing internship

curriculum, matching students to internship opportunities and evaluating student

performance. We are pleased to offer this product to other jurisdictions in an effort topromote environmental public health as a viable career.

Workforce Development Manual

This manual illustrates the components necessary to develop andimplement an environmental health post-secondary internship program.You can utilize some or all of the information and/or tools provided todevelop a program on whatever scale you desire.

Post Secondary Internship Program

Is an effective mechanism to prepare students for the environmentalhealth workforce in whatever environmental health discipline(s) desiredby the agency. The student will gain practical on-the-job skills andimprove their ability to apply academic theory into workplace practice.Internships provide students with an outcome-based experience thatprepares them for available environmental health jobs. Likewise, aninternship program can provide public health agencies with anopportunity to stock future labor pool participants with a tool box ofskills that will increase the likelihood they will succeed when hired intoenvironmental health positions.

Workforce Development Challenges Facing EnvironmentalHealth

Between 40 percent and 50 percent of the environmental healthworkforce will be eligible to retire in the next five years.

More than 90 percent of the current workforce has no formaldegree in public health or environmental health.

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Decades of high turnover have resulted in a workforce that isinexperienced, inadequately trained, and in need of emergingleaders to fill leadership roles rapidly being vacated because of

large numbers of retirements. Extensive emergency response training is needed for emerging

threats, including natural and human-made disasters.

Many environmental public health programs are severelyunderstaffed and are continuously seeking competentenvironmental health practitioners.

Multnomah County Environmental Health hopes this manual is helpful asyou strive to improve the environmental health workforce in yourjurisdiction. As you use this manual, please take a few moments to fillout and return the evaluation form, so that we can continue to improvethis tool for future users.

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This CD provides step-by-step instructions and templates necessary todevelop and implement a comprehensive workforce developmentprogram that can be easily integrated into any environmental healthdiscipline. Multnomah County Environmental Healths workforcedevelopment program evolved over several years in several differentphases, however, the program has provided immediate outcome-basedbenefits which have increased our ability to reduce environmental publichealth risk/exposure in the following ways: 1) Reduce number ofmosquitoes that carry Eastern Equine Encephalitis and West Nile Virus.A Portland State University Community Health student researched thelocation of defunct mines in Multnomah County that are breedinghabitats for a newly discovered mosquito species in Multnomah County.By locating these breeding sites, MCEH is able to conduct mosquitocontrol efforts in these areas to reduce the number of mosquitoes whocarry and possibly transmit these diseases to residents of MultnomahCounty; 2) Educate our local community about environmental healthhazards of rats, mosquitoes, asthma triggers, lead poisoning, and WestNile Virus to reduce these public health risk/exposures. Four internshave assisted with curriculum research and educational resourcedevelopment, providing MCEH with the capacity to conduct outreach toour community; 3) Lower risk of food borne illness. Four interns haveconducted risk rating surveys with restaurant operators that will assistMCEH to change public policy to inspect restaurants based on menucomplexity. By changing food safety laws, MCEH will be able to lowerthe incidents of food borne illness throughout the state of Oregon.

Since inception in September 2004, MCEH has conducted 9 internships.

Two of the nine interns have been hired into open Environmental HealthSpecialist and/or Vector Control position. The internship provided themwith appropriate environmental health skills, knowledge, and experiencethat enabled them to get hired within the organization and transitionfrom student intern into permanent employees, thusly increasing ourlocal environmental health workforce.

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Chapter

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All the information and tools provided in this CD can be replicated in fullor modified to develop a program of any scale. Whatever scale ofprogram you chose to create, your program will go through an

evolutionary process. We have described the steps that occurred as ourprogram evolved from an abstract concept to viable operating program.As your own workforce development program evolves, you may have togo through some or all of the following steps: 1) assessment; 2) buildingcapacity; 3) hiring and/or assigning qualified staff; 4) developing yourprogram; 5) re-assessment/evaluation.

Step 1: ASSESSMENT-Agency Gap Analysis Using the 10Essential Services Framework

In 2002, facing ever-increasing demand for environmental healthservices in an era of government budget tightening, MCEH utilized asystems-based approach to improveenvironmental health problems, in order to maximize its limitedresources to protect the publics health. We conducted a preliminaryanalysis of our service system to determine our current capacity and tofind critical gaps in our services, so the agency could strategically makeimprovements in services. We examined our services in relation to the

ten essential environmental health services developed by Carl Osaki, RS,MSPH from the University of Washington. The assessment revealedcritical gaps in our ability to conduct food and vector surveillance,implement comprehensive community outreach, and mobilizepartnerships to identify and solve EH problems, and assure a competentenvironmental workforce.

The following Essential Service table could be used as a template tocomplete your own assessment to determine if your agency couldbenefit from implementing a workforce development program in yourjurisdiction. Essential Service #4 and #8 specifically refer to workforce

development issues.

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Essential Service #1Monitor health status to identify community EH problems

Standard: A systematic approach to collect and analyze data on Environmental Health hazards that puts apopulation at risk.Indicator Current Agency Capacity Critical Gaps

Does the local public healthsystem have a system in place toassess environmental healththreats?Does the local EH agency have aformal system in place to acquirecommunity input?Do you have the ability to accessinformation on health hazards andaccurate assessment of risk?Can the EH department

communicate to thecommunity/population at risk?

Essential Service #2Diagnosing and investigating EH hazards and problemsStandard: There is the ability to investigate and diagnose from an environmental cause of contribution

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsDo you have the authority andresources to investigate or analyze

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EH problems?Is 24/7 epidemiology capacityavailable?Is Lab and communicable diseasesurveillance capacity available toinvestigate potential problems?Do you have a memorandum ofagreement with all the agenciesinvolved in environmental healthhazards/risks?Do you have a formal relationshipwith organizations that do similarwork? (occupational, ecology etc.

Essential Service #3 Informing, educating and empowering people about EH issuesStandard: Mechanism exists to inform and educate the community and interested parties in Environmental Healthissues and concerns

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Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsDoes and EH advisory group exist?Do you have a system for rapiddissemination of information?

Do you have connections with otheragencies and staff to communicaterelevant information?

Does your staff have theskills/ability/competency to effectivelycommunicate with differentcommunities?(ethnic groups, tribes, gender,subcultures, belief systems, deerhunters?)


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Essential Service #4Mobilizing partnerships to identify and solve EH problemsStandard: The jurisdiction actively works with community partners to address Environmental Health concerns andissues

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsAre all the stakeholders/interestedparties identified?

Do you have a partnership with anacademic organization/EH school?Do you have a guide/directory ofcommunity partners?Have the community groups youveeducated/informed/outreachedbecome partners?

Essential Service #5Developing policies and plans that support EH effortsStandard: A process exists to define an issue, explore options, select a role for government and design a plan of action

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsDo you have a system in place toidentify priorities?Do you know who EH policy makersare inside and outside yourorganization?Are there leaders, champions, thepolitical will, local politicalorganizations (local Board of Health)that support your work?

Do you have access to policy makers?

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Do the decision-makers in the EHdepartment receive training in policy?

Standard # 6Enforcing laws and regulations that protect health and ensure safety

Standard: Compliance with EH laws is accomplished by appropriately qualified personnel in a fair and expedientmanner

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsDo you have a system in place forevaluating the effectiveness of laws,regulations, enforcement andcompliance?Are your laws and regulations clear andunderstandable and interpretable? Arethey reviewed regularly?Is there a process for you to bringforward to policy makers rules that areoften not being complied with, etc.?Is there a system in place to getfeedback from the regulatedcommunity?

.

Is there a system to identifypublic/environmental healthresponsibilities in the event of healththreats?Do you have access to legaladvice/resources?Do you have a way to ensureconsistency and standardization?Are rules evaluated routinely for validity

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and due process?

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Essential Service #7Linking people to needed EH services and assuring the provision of EH services when otherwiseunavailableStandard: Do all citizens have equal access to environmental health services or referral as needed?

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsAre there assessed needs that areunmet identified and addressed?

Are unmet needs catalogued andreasons for needs not being metidentified? (i.e. barriers such aslanguage, culture, resources)Does a mechanism exist to overcomeunmet needs? Such as a process tomobilize community support, andengage and empower community inorder to create political will. Or aprocess to address needs by identifyingappropriate resourcesIs emergency contact available 24/7?

Essential Service #8Assuring a competent EH workforce

Standard: EH services and programs are delivered and managed by competent staffIndicator Current Capacity Critical Gaps

Is there a level of academic/education,experiential and testing competenciesthat all staff meet that are appropriatefor their responsibilities?Is there a standard for requiredcompetencies based on individualpositions?

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Are there training plans for staff toimprove the skills, knowledge andabilities needed for that position?Do you hire, recruit, retain, and promotea workforce that reflects thecommunity?

Essential Service #9Evaluating the effectiveness, accessibility and quality of EH servicesStandard: A system exists to continuously improve program services

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsIs there a process or system in placeto measure/evaluate your programseffectiveness?

Do you measureoutcomes/performance standards?Is there a process for obtainingfeedback from the effected/regulatedcommunity as to how effective yourprogram is?Are changes made in response to theevaluations and feedback?

Essential Service # 10Identification of new insights and innovative solutions to EH problemsStandard: There is the ability to identify and pursue emerging issues through research or to apply innovation in theworkplace

Indicator Current Capacity Critical GapsIs there a process/system to identifyresearch needs?Do you know the resources available

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to you and your organization to meetthese needs?Is there an awards program forinnovative solutions?Do you feel you have the freedom toadvance new ideas, make mistakesand admit failures?Do you have discretionary fundsavailable to research or solveproblems creatively?Do you have the capacity to seekfunding, apply for grants, and identifypartners for research?

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Step 2: Building capacity to develop a comprehensiveworkforce development program

The assessment in step one will also help to identify areas where youragency may need and/or want to build capacity to implement aworkforce development program. A workforce development programcan be as extensive as your agency wants and/or needs it to be. Theprogram can consist of one student and one mentor already employedwithin your agency or, can involve multiple interns and multiple staffresponsible for coordinating and operating the program.

In MCEHs case, the assessment revealed that the agency desired tooffer regular and continuous internships through a stable, sustainable

program, but lacked the staffing capacity and funding to implement ourideal workforce development program. Environmental Health Specialistswere operating at full capacity conducting inspections, and unable todedicate their services to developing a comprehensive workforcedevelopment program. It was clear that MCEH needed to locate newrevenue and resources to build the capacity to address these criticalgaps. In lieu of hiring another Environmental Health Specialist, MCEHhired a Program Development Specialist Sr. with grant writingexperience to work on building agency capacity. Over the next threeyears, MCEH applied and received the following new grants andresources to address the critical gaps identified in our assessment.

1) CDC 3-year $300,000 Essential Services Capacity buildinggrant;

2) Public Health Prevention Specialist position funded for twoyears by CDC;

3) HUD 3-year $980,000 Healthy Home grant;4) 1-year $30,000 EPA Asthma Trigger Reduction grant;5) 1 year EPHT data tracking grant;6) 1-year $30,000 NACCHO Food Safety Education grant;7) In partnership with DHS Lead Poisoning Prevention program

EPA Lead grant EHS awarded $20,000 to conduct lead outreach

to the African Refugee population.

With this new revenue, MCEH was able to hire staff to coordinate theWorkforce Development program and fund its operating costs.Depending upon the complexity of the workforce development programyou want to offer, your agency may have to look for additional staffing

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and funding resources in order to implement an internship and/or K-12environmental health educational program in your jurisdiction.

The following are some resources which may help you with yourcapacity building efforts.

The Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs(AEHAP)

Environmental Public Health Leadership Institute (EPHLI)

Environmental Health Workforce Development Consortium

Capacity-Building Projectswww.cdc.gov/nceh/CapacityBuilding/default.html/

EHSB Information Resources

Uniformed Services Environmental Health Public Health CareerInitiative.

National Environmental Health Association www.neha.org

National Association of County and City Health Officials

American Public Health Association

Federal grant opportunities www.grants.gov

National Institute of Environmental Health Science www.niehs.nih.gov

Step 3: Hiring and/or assigning qualified staff

With the addition of these new resources, especially the CDC 3-year

Essential Services Capacity Building grant, MCEH was able to hire and/orfund two positions which were crucial to the development andimplementation of our workforce development program: 1) ProgramDevelopment Specialist Sr. position mentioned above and a full-time 2)Health Educator. These positions provided the staffing, development,and networking resources necessary to create and implement theprogram, without compromising the environmental health regulatoryservices provided by the agency.

It is important to keep in mind that if you are creating a workforcedevelopment program on a smaller scale, you may not need new staff

positions to implement. Your workforce development program canconsist of one intern and one mentor or be as comprehensive as whatwe developed. If your agency is going to utilize existing staff tocoordinate and supervise interns, the individuals selected must have thetime to coordinate the students and environmental health technicalknowledge to guide them through their practical experience. Small steps

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http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/CapacityBuilding/default.html/http://www.neha.org/http://www.grants.gov/http://www.niehs.nih.gov/http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/CapacityBuilding/default.html/http://www.neha.org/http://www.grants.gov/http://www.niehs.nih.gov/


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that agencies take to improve the environmental health workforce willcollectively help the workforce of tomorrow.

Step 4: Developing and implementing the workforcedevelopment program

The following pages provide step-by-step instructions on how MCEHdeveloped and implemented our workforce development program as aresult of the work in steps 1 3 above. All of the processes, forms andsuggestions are ones that can be modeled and/or individually tailoredfor your own public health agency to use in the development of yourworkforce development program. If you are implementing a smallerscale program, you can choose the processes, forms and suggestionsthat will be most beneficial to your program.

Step 5: Re-assessment: Gap Analysis of 2005:

MCEH felt is was important to revisit the Essential Service gap analysisof 2002, to determine if their capacity building and development effortswere successful in filing the critical gaps identified during the 2002analysis. After your workforce development program is fully operational,it may be beneficial to evaluate if you are meeting essential services #4and #8 with the program that you developed.

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Characteristics of a Model Host Organization

In order for an internship program to be successful, it is imperative thatthe host organization provide a strong foundation for the program whichincludes the following characteristics (Designing EnvironmentalInternships A Guide for Successful Experiences April 1996):

Senior management in the host organization supports the conceptof the organization offering an internship as a training opportunityfor environmental health professions.

The host organization has the ability to provide hands-onexperience and develops activities/projects where student internscan apply scientific principles in environmental health practice.

The host organization is willing and able to conduct the internship

to complement the interns degree program and meet academicinstitution standards.

The host organization has clearly defined, tangible work to beaccomplished by the student intern including specificresponsibilities and performance expectations.

The host organization is able to provide the resources for theinternship including assigning the student to a mentor, studentstipend or salary, supplies needed for the project/activity.

The host organization is willing and able to involve interns directlyin projects.

The host organization is able to receive and support external

works for short periods of time. Although it is not absolutely necessary, it can be benefit the

internship experience if the host organization is willing and able toprovide financial support for a student intern and has supportmechanisms in place prior to students arrival.

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The host organization is willing to provide intern with informationand guidance about environmental health career opportunities.

The host organization has the resource and staffing capacity to

develop and implement a solid internship infrastructure prior tostudent placement.

The following checklist will help you assess whether or not yourorganization will be able to develop and sustain a comprehensiveenvironmental health internship program.

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Building Necessary Partnerships

A key component to build an effective internship program is to developongoing partnerships with local academic institutions. Whether youdevelop a small program with a simple structure or a program that has acomplex structure such as MCEH, your program must embrace thephilosophy that the university/college, student and public health agencyare mutual partners. A strong partnership will enable the internshipprogram to provide students with a health outcome-based experiencethat integrates academic theory and environmental health skill practiceinto effective learning. The academic institution and the public healthagency need to have an equal level of commitment in order for theinternship program to succeed and the partnership must exist at everyphase of implementation including:

Preparing students for their internship experience:

Academic Institution role: Teaching the student environmentalhealth or science theory in the classroom that will allow them todevelop environmental health skills through practical applicationat the worksite. During their college experience, the school will:1) teach the student how to learn; 2) massage their desire to puttheir knowledge to use in practice; and 3) nurture theircommitment and enthusiasm that will fuel them through theirinternship experience.

Public Health Agency role: It is essential for the Public HealthAgency to collaborate with academic programs to: 1) ensure thecollege/university incorporates environmental health curriculuminto academic programs; 2) teach students about environmentalhealth career opportunities that can be explored through astructured internship experience so they can make informedcareer choices; and 3) assess students skills, skill gaps,experiences and career knowledge before internship placement to

ensure their internship is beneficial and successful.

Recruitment of students into the internship program:

Academic institution role: Academic staff including: professors,adjunct professors, Deans, and academic counselors need to becommitted to informing students about public health internship

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opportunities and recruiting students into the internship programon a regular basis. Internship advisors should develop internshipopportunities through contacts in research, practice and service

activities with public health agencies. They also should assiststudents in identifying appropriate internship sites. Classroomprofessors should provide their students with internshipinformational resources that the public health agency provides.

Public Health Agency Role: The public health agency will need todevelop internship marketing tools such as business cards,brochures, fliers and application packet. The public healthagency should request academia to post internship information on

university websites, list serves, job placement boards, in career

center offices and other recruiting venues.

Mentoring/supervising students throughout theirinternship:

Academic institution role: The academic institution will ensurethat the internship is complimenting the students academicclassroom work throughout the duration of the internship. If not,the institution should initiate correspondence with the publichealth agency to modify the internship accordingly. The academicadvisor should meet with the student regularly throughout the

internship period. The advisor will be responsible for reviewingthe internship application, signing the learning contract (internshipagreement form), discussing internship issues with the worksitesupervisor, reviewing the student evaluation form with the studentand discussing future career options for the student.

Public health agency role: The public health agency needs toensure that mentors are available who have the skills and abilityto monitor and guide the student through the internshipexperience. The mentor/supervisor chosen must achieve aspecified level of experience and technical competency in his orher environmental specialty that enables them to providetechnical guidance to the student. The mentor/supervisor must bewilling and able to

o provide the intern with hands-on experience designed toincrease professional competence;

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o commit designated time periods (specific number of hoursper day or week) to work with interns;

o demonstrate understanding of the structure, organization,

goals and objects of the agency as well as the internshipprogram;

o provide feedback to the student about his or her work on adaily basis as well as during final evaluation.

The mentor/supervisor will review the internship application, signthe internship agreement form and ensure that the contract isfulfilled. They will also provide an orientation for the student uponbeginning the internship experience. They will supervise thestudent throughout the experience and confer with the studentsinternship advisor as necessary. They will complete a student

evaluation form and consult with the academic advisor on thestudents performance.

Evaluation of the internship:

Academic Institution role:At the completion of the students internship experience, theacademic institution will collect data from the student to evaluateif the internship experience provided the student with a goodoverall learning experience. Additionally, they will evaluateif the student received adequate supervision and if the studentwill recommend the internship to other students.

Public health agency role:The public health agency will collect data from the student toevaluate 1) if the experience provided the student with a realisticview of what working in the environmental health field is like; 2) ifthe student has a better understanding of how to apply concepts,theories and skills learned in the classroom in work practice; and3) if the experience better prepared them to enter the workforce.

Marketing the internship program for sustainability

Academic Institution role: As curriculum and degree programs areassessed through the accreditation process, academic advisorswill need to advocate that 1) internship programs enhances:student learning, the community, future workforce and

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accreditation status. The institution must be committed to marketthe internship program on their websites, list serves, jobplacement boards, in career offices and in the classroom.

Public Health Agency Role: The public health agency will need todevelop and implement an ongoing marketing plan to increase thevisibility of the internship program locally as well as across thenation.

Local Partnership Sources:

Public/private universities with the following degreeprograms:

Community HealthEnvironmental HealthEnvironmental ScienceGeneral ScienceLife ScienceCommunity Health NursingMaster of Public HealthMaster of Public AdministrationLiberal Arts

Local Community Colleges

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POST SECONDARY INTERNSHIPS

The post secondary internship provides students who areattending undergraduate, graduate and/or vocational/communitycollege post high school with an outcome-based experience thatintegrates academic theory and environmental health skillpractice into effective learning. The internship is tailored to thestudents existing skills, skill gaps, experience, and careeraspirations. There are three basic types of post secondaryinternships, which can be tailored to the individual studentsacademic and career needs: project-based internship,observational internship, focused skill-based training. The publichealth agency can pick and chose the type of internship theywould like to offer.

Project-based Internship: A project-based internship is aninteractive experience that allows the student to observe, practiceand use the academic theory learned in the classroom on realwork projects. Ideally this type of internship is most successful ifthe internship is 1 3 months in length because it allows enoughtime for the student to become oriented to the worksite, learnabout the project he/she will work on, produce tangible projectoutcomes and outputs, and receive project feedback. Some ofgeneral concepts the student will learn and practice are:

General Internship Concepts (student will participate in a project(s)that will teach them):Communication skills to effectively work with the general public, governmentalagencies, community-based organizations, businesses, and other job relatedcontacts.Problem solving skills to learn how to apply ideas and academic theory to meetdesired outcomes.

Analytical skills to learn how environmental health services are developed andimplemented based on relevant, measurable data.Organizational skills necessary to work on multiple tasks and ideassimultaneously so that deadlines are met.Interpersonal skills to work collaboratively with fellow employees andmanagement.Academic environmental health theories to increase understanding of how

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such concepts apply to real life situations.Specific Environmental Health Concepts:Environmental Health and vector health risks and how MCEH works to minimize

risks and protect public health.Ability to describe the role of environmental public health.Understand the role of regulation in a social justice environment (social justiceenvironment is comprised of people, community, culture, prevention andintervention).An individualized internship will be designed to expose the student to officework and field work that will fulfill their interest, help support their careeraspirations, and supplement the general internship concepts learned above.

The mentor/supervisor will have a critical role in ensuring thestudent achieves the end products which are desired from theproject.

Observational Internship: An observational internship is one inwhich the student shadows workers in the worksite and absorbsinformation by listening and watching what occurs. In anobservational internship, the student does not produce tangibleproducts (outputs) from their experience. The duration of anobservational internship can be for be any length of time, buttypically they are the most successful if they are kept to 1-5 daysbecause the student and the intern tend to become disinterestedif the observational internship is longer than 5 days.

Focused skill-based training: The sole purpose of a focused,skill-based training internship is to teach a desired skill in 1-2days. MCEH offered these types of internships to colleagues frompartnering agencies instead of college students. During this typeof internship, the intern is exposed to a much narrower scope ofenvironmental health information. Once the skill is learned, theinternship is concluded. Some examples of skill-based training

internships are: Teaching an intern to use vector surveillance microscope

Teaching an intern how to perform a rat inspection

Teaching an intern how to trap mosquitoes

The public health agency will need to determine which of thethree types of internships (project-based, observational or focused

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skill-based training) the agency will be able to support withappropriate staffing and skill expertise.

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In order to develop and implement an effective internship program, thepublic health agency will need staffing resources to support: 1) programplanning and systems development; 2) mentoring/supervising of interns;and 3) marketing the internship program. It will be up to the agency todetermine if some or all of these functions can be performed by one ormultiple people within the agency.

1) Program Planning and Systems Development:

Developing and implementing an internship program requires time andcommitment. Students will benefit the most from an internship programthat is thoughtfully planned, organized, and provides a structure thatwill maximize the students ability to learn about environmental healthand applicable job skills.

Program planning will include planning and developing the followingcomponents:

Application process

Screening/matching process

Orientation process

Supervision/mentorship system

Internship forms

Internship evaluation

2) Internship Mentors/Supervisors:

Once interns are placed at your public health agency worksite, they willneed regular mentoring and/or supervision to make sure they arelearning appropriate concepts and skills. Internship oversight needs tobe provided so the intern will be able to successfully complete projectsand learn the concepts and skills that the internship was designed toprovide them.

The public health agency will need to appoint a staff member(s) to serveas mentor/supervisor of the intern. This person must have theexperience and skills necessary to plan the projects the student willwork on and provide technical assistance to the intern while theycomplete their internship project(s). If the internship is an observational

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experience, the mentor/supervisor will need to ensure the student hasaccess to field work, meetings, and daily work that will expose thestudent to information and concepts the student desires to learn.

The mentor/supervisor will be responsible for: 1) orienting the student tothe agency and projects they will work on; 2) developing an orientationschedule and work plan which details activities the student will perform;3) be available to answer questions, provide recommendations andfeedback which will assist the student to achieve project outcomesand outputs; 4) introduce the student to agency staff and personnel; 5)correspond with the students academic advisor when needed; and 6)evaluate the student.

3) Marketing the Program:

Marketing is a critical component of creating a successful internshipprogram. Marketing will ensure: 1) commitment to the academicinstitution and public health agency partnership; 2) steady flow ofstudents into the program; 3) program visibility and credibility as acomprehensive learning opportunity for students that will benefit theenvironmental health workforce. The public health agency will need tomarket the program to universities so that they incorporate internshipsinto their curriculum, and the university will need to market the programto a broad spectrum of undergraduate and graduate programs to spark

environmental health interest amongst a larger pool of students.

Marketing Plan: A marketing plan can assist the agency to developand implement the internship program using logical and effectivemethods. The marking plan can help identify: 1) which colleges anduniversities to target and their appropriate contact information; 2)marketing activities and tools which will be utilized; 3) and timeline formarketing activities.

Marketing Strategies: Some of the marketing strategies to try are:

Creating internship job descriptions

Posting internship opportunities on university websites

Posting internship opportunities on job boards

Posting internship opportunities in career offices

Word of mouth by university professors, deans of colleges, gradassistants

Posting on university and student list-serves

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The following is an internship program implementation plan, whichincludes a marketing component, which can be used as a template to

create your own plan to develop, market and implement your internshipprogram. MCEH provided some examples of goals, objectives that weused to develop our internship program. Your agency will need toidentify your own goals, objectives and activities needed to create yourown internship program.

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMNARRATIVE:

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Purpose/Goals of the Program:

Desired Outcomes:

Long-term objectives:

Short-term Objectives:

Outputs:

Implementation Timeline:

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BUILDING INTERNSHIP CAPACITY:

GOAL: Identifying and securing staffing and funding resources to develop andimplement a workforce development program.

Activity Due Date WhoResponsibl

e

Contactperson /

phone # /email

Progress

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BUILDING INTERNAL SYSTEMS:

GOAL: Build internal systems to support an agency-wide internship program:Internal systems includeidentifying staff to coordinate the program, identifyingappropriate internship projects; identifying staff to mentor and supervise interns,creating intern scope of work and/or work plans for appropriate internship projects;develop by-in from field staff as to the benefits of having interns ride along in the field,develop ride-a-long schedule etc


e

Contactperson /

phone # /email

Progress

Creating the structure of the internship program that staff will buy into andsupport

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MARKETING THE PROGRAM:

GOAL: Building relationships with institutions of higher learning andmarketing the program to

recruit students into the program.

PURPOSE: The purpose of building relationships with institutions of higher learning isto develop ongoing collaborative partnerships so that the agency can:

a) Improve recruitment of interns to our agency. Recruitment techniquesinclude posting on websites, job boards, list serves, marketing by professorsetc;

b) Infiltrate academic fields of study with environmental/public healthinformation so that more institutions are aware of the learning opportunitiesthat exist at the agency and include internships as part of their curriculum;

c) Identify if collaborative research projects exist with the school.

Building relationships with academic institutions encompasses the following outcomes:a) Developing solid contacts within the academic institutions and relevant fields

of study;b) Provide appropriate fields of studies with training on environmental health,

health education and vector services;c) Utilize contacts to recruit future interns; and to distribute environmental

health information to appropriate professors and their students.d) Distribute internship program marketing tools to the academic institution so

they can post internship opportunities on university websites, list serves, jobboards and in career offices. The academic professors, advisors and Deans

can market the program to their students in their classrooms.

Activity DueDate

WhoResponsib

le

Contact person / phone #/ email

Progress


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IMPROVING THE LINK BETWEEN AGENCY INTERNSHIP PROGRAM AND OTHERLOCAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAMS

GOAL:


e

Contactperson /

phone # /

Progress

OPERATING THE INTERNSHIP PROGRAMGOAL:


e

Contactperson /

phone # /

Progress

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1) Application Process:

When the student contacts the agency to inquire about a possibleinternship, the first step is to provide them with an overview of theenvironmental health internship program and internship programapplication packet. The packet should include:

Document PurposeCover letter Introduces the internship program

and the process for internshipplacement

Application Identifies the studentsdemographic information,internship interests and availability

Scope of Works for the types ofinternships the agency will offer

(MCEH offered project-basedinternships in the following content

areas: Health Education, Field-based, General)

Details the concepts and skills thatwill be learned on each of the threetypes of internships that MCEHoffers

Student questionnaire Identifies the interns skills and skill

gaps at the start of internshipplacement. This documents helpsmatch students to the rightexperience based on their skills,skill gaps and career interests

Faculty cover letter Provides the academic institutionand/or academic advisor with basicinformation about the internshipprogram and the process for thestudent to get placed at theagency.

Internship agreement Form Identifies the roles of the student,academic advisor and public healthagency. All three parties sign theagreement form confirming theircommitment to their respectiveroles.

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Once the student receives the packet, the student is responsible forcompleting the internship application, student questionnaire and the

agreement form which requires a signature from their academic advisor.When the completed documents are returned to the internship programcoordinator, the coordinator will begin to screen and match the studentto their ideal internship experience within the organization.

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2) Screening and Matching Students to Internship Experiences:

Screening and matching students to the appropriate internship is acritical component to ensuring the internship is a beneficial experiencefor both the student and the public health agency. Screening involves:1) determining if the student truly has interest in the environmentalhealth field; and 2) if an environmental health internship will complimenttheir academic study and provide them with applicable skills andknowledge that will assist them in their career pursuit post graduation.MCEH conducts such screening during an in-person informal interviewwith the student so the internship coordinator and the student can havean open ended dialogue about the students coarse work at theuniversity and future career desires. The internship coordinator uses

the information discussed in the interview to determine if this studentwould benefit from placement at the agency. The student also has anopportunity to determine if they truly are interested in pursuing anenvironmental health internship with the agency. If both parties feel it isa good fit, then the information discussed is then used to develop a workplan for the student.

3) Scope of Work and Work Plans:

Scope of Work:A scope of work is a document that identifies the types of concepts that

will be learned during the internship. You can use the scope of work tocreate a work plan for the student, by using it to help you selectappropriate activities that involve the learning concepts identified in thescope of work. In addition, you can use the scope of work as a tool tohelp you market your program to colleges and universities, because itprovides the institution with a succinct, informative document thatillustrates how the internship will benefit their students. A scope of workshould be developed for each type (content area) of internship beingoffered at the agency. The following are three examples of internshipsscopes that MCEH developed and used: 1) Health Education; 2) Field-based; and 3) general.

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governmental agencies, community-based organizations, businesses; problemsolving skills to learn how to apply ideas and academic theory to meet desireoutcomes; analytical skills to learn how environmental health services are

developed and implemented based on relevant, measurable data; organizationalskills to work collaboratively with fellow employees and management;understanding how academic environmental health theories apply in real life.Evaluation of the Internship Experience:Student will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the internship experience.MCEH staff will provide the student with a written evaluation of their performanceduring the internship so that they can use the feedback to improve performance infuture jobs.

Environmental Health Field-BasedInternship TrackConcepts Students will Learn:

Orientation:Orientation to the Multnomah County Health Department.General Orientation to Multnomah County Environmental Health and theorganizational structure: Food Safety program, Food Handler education, LeadPoisoning and Prevention program, Drinking water program, Communicable DiseaseTeam, Vital Records, Grants and Contracts, Community Health Education.Introduction to Environmental Health.General Orientation to Multnomah County Vector and Nuisance Control.Orientation to HIPPA (confidentiality policies).

Introduction to diversity in the workplace including cross-cultural communication andtraining in Intercultural settings.Orientation to staff and environment where internship will be located.Environmental Health Field-based Work:Ability to describe the role of environmental public health.Introduction to Food-borne Illness and Communicable Disease.Introduction to Environmental Health regulations and enforcement (codes, laws,statues).Introduction to Environmental Health Specialists role in food, water and public healthsafety.Student will be exposed to field work including inspection of restaurants, pools, mobile

units, temporary events, childcare centers, drinking water systems, and lead riskassessments.Introduction to vector-borne diseases, vector surveillance and control.Student will be exposed to vector field work including mosquito and rodentsurveillance, mosquito and rodent control work, and nuisance enforcement.The student will learn how to work with facility owners, state agencies DHS, Oregon

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Department of Agriculture, federal agencies such as Food and Drug Administration.Collecting and analyzing field-based data and how it contributes to implementingenvironmental health programs and services and protecting public health.

Understanding the role of regulation in a social justice environment (social justiceenvironment is comprised of people, community, culture, prevention andintervention).Employment / Professional Skills:The student will be provided opportunities and projects to develop the followingemployment skills: Communication skills to work effectively with general public,governmental agencies, community-based organizations, businesses; problem solvingskills to learn how to apply ideas and academic theory to meet desire outcomes;analytical skills to learn how environmental health services are developed andimplemented based on relevant, measurable data; organizational skills to workcollaboratively with fellow employees and management; academic environmental

health theories to increase understanding of how such concepts apply to real life.Evaluation of the Internship Experience:Student will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the internship experience.MCEH staff will provide the student with a written evaluation of their performanceduring the internship so that they can use the feedback to improve performance infuture jobs.

Environmental Health General Track

Concepts Students will Learn:

Orientation:Orientation to Multnomah County Health Department.General Orientation to Multnomah County Environmental Health and theorganizational structure: Food Safety program, Food Handler education, LeadPoisoning and Prevention program, Drinking water program, CommunicableDisease Team, Vital Records, Grants and Contracts, Community HealthEducation.Introduction to Environmental Health.General Orientation to Multnomah County Vector and Nuisance Control.Orientation to HIPPA (confidentiality policy).Introduction to diversity in the workplace including cross-culturalcommunication and training in intercultural settings.Orientation to staff and environment where internship will be located.General Internship Concepts (student will participate in a project(s)that will teach them):Communication skills to effectively work with the general public, governmentalagencies, community-based organizations, businesses, and other job related

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contacts.Problem solving skills to learn how to apply ideas and academic theory to meetdesired outcomes.

Analytical skills to learn how environmental health services are developed andimplemented based on relevant, measurable data.Organizational skills necessary to work on multiple tasks and ideassimultaneously so that deadlines are met.Interpersonal skills to work collaboratively with fellow employees andmanagement.Academic environmental health theories to increase understanding of how suchconcepts apply to real life situations.Specific Environmental Health Concepts:Environmental Health and vector health risks and how MCEH works to minimizerisks and protect public health.Ability to describe the role of environmental public health.Understand the role of regulation in a social justice environment (social justiceenvironment is comprised of people, community, culture, prevention andintervention).An individualized internship will be designed to expose the student to officework and field work that will fulfill their interest, help support their careeraspirations, and supplement the general internship concepts learned above.Evaluation of the Internship Experience:Student will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the internshipexperience.

MCEH staff will provide the student with a written evaluation of theirperformance during the internship so that they can use the feedback toimprove performance in future jobs.

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If the student is interested in learning about concepts in more than onescope of work, the work plan can be developed to accommodate the

students diverse interests and needs.

Work plans:The assessment information collected during the screening interviewwith the student should be conveyed to the person identified to be theon-site supervisor/mentor for the intern, so that a comprehensive workplan can be developed that will provide the student with the learningobjectives identified in the scope of work. The degree of detail that isincluded in the work plan depends, to some degree, on the need of thestudent. Some students do not need a lot of structure to meetinternship expectations while others do. The following are some

examples of work plans:

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Environmental Health Educator and

Promotion Internship Work PlanIntern: KamarInternship Period: May 1, 2006 June 30, 2006Internship Hours: 240 hours total = 30 hours/weekProject: Lead Poisoning Prevention Education and Outreach to the

local Somali population

Task/Activity PersonsInvolved

Deadline

Introduction to Multnomah County

Environmental Health (vision, mission,objectives)

Kari Week 1

Lead 101, EPA Lead poisoning prevention grantreview, intro to outreach plan

Kari Lyons,Ben, Lila

Week 1

Introduction to cross-cultural communicationand training in Intercultural settings

Kari Week 1

Review existing educational materials. Ben Week 2Determine strategies for outreach andeducation within Somali Bantu community

Kamar, Kari,Ben

Week 2

Alter/develop educational materials based ontarget populations needs.

Kamar, Ben,Kevin

Week 2

Build partnerships with trusted communitymembers, church leaders, civic organizations,neighborhood associations and other groupsaffiliated with target populations

Kamar Week 2/3

Develop evaluation tools to assess achievementof trainings and outreach activities

Kari, Kamar Week 3

Gather other community collateral for healthpromotion activities.

Kamar, Kari,Ben

Week 3/4

Schedule, focus groups, trainings or workshopsper month with target populations

Kamar Week 3-11

Deliver health presentations on lead poisoningto target populations Kamar Week 3-11

Mid-internship evaluation; Review outreachstrategies and approaches; Alter existing modelbased on lessons learned.

Kari, Lynn, Ben,Kamar

Week 6/7

Gather and analyze demographic and culturalinformation about target populations, create

Kamar Week 3-11

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lessons learned about trainings. Potentiallyorganize African womens health one-dayworkshop.

Discuss potential opportunities for incorporatingmore long-term education into the MCVNCprogram.

Kamar, Ben,Kari, Lynn

Week 3-11

Overall internship evaluation Lynn and Kari Week 12

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Randall Wallace, Spring 2006 Internship Plan: Health EducationTrack 240 hours. Kari Lyons SupervisorHealth Educator Track InternshipIntern Goals are to help Health Educator Intern to participate in the following activities:

1. Develop a user-friendly, culturally competent Norovirus FAQ sheet; developing a FAQ

sheet distribution plan to vulnerable populations and implement plan.2. Assist in marketing revenue-generating online Food Handler website.3. Solicit donations that will improve the well-being of transitional community members,especially vulnerable children and during summer months.4. Research training activities for Avian influenza outreach to learn about engagingcommunity members about risk communication, emergency prepardness, and Avian flu that is simple andeasily comprehensible.5. Develop user-friendly, culturally competent display board to be used to promote EHpreventative care messages to the public.

Project Name Project Goal Tasks ContactsProjectHomelessConnect/ Our

EnvironmentalOur HealthDonations

To obtain insect repellant(500), alternativerepellant (500), and dust

mite pillow donations(100) for homelessfamilies for July 11th

outreach event; Toobtain repellent (500),Klean Kanteens (200_and dust mite pillows(100) castile soap (400:Trader Joes) for National

Conduct internet research forproducts.Contact manufactures to

request donation.3. Fill out and submitdonation applications asrequired.4. Pick up donations if required.5. Communicateresults to supervisor onweekly basis.

Trader JoesTargetFred Meyer

Producers of OffVendors found during internetsearch

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Health Clinic Week.Online-FoodHandlerMarketing

To assist in marketingon-line food handlerwebsite to help increaserevenue from thisfunding source.

1. Work with EHS staff toensure they receive stickersand understand the valueof the stickers, location,etc. Check with Souriyainitially on how to

communicate concept toEHS team.

2. Either individually orworking with Graphic ArtistKevin Kitamura, take theon-line businesscards/sticker design, andmake a 8 by 11 postersheets (printed on 2250 atSE office), 45 copies oncard stock (Kari has) anddistribute to all librarylocations, Oregonemployment offices and

work with Susana to get tooff-site locations.

Souriya: phone x 55555(in SEHC)

Kevin x 55555 (in Multnomah bldg)

Susana x 55555 (in SEHC)

Norovirus FAQSheet

To create a NorovirusFact Sheet to assist ineducating the publicabout Norovirus

1. Research norovirus on theinternet. Meet with GreigWarner (SEHC) and use theClark County Fact Sheet asa foundation for creating aNorovirus fact Sheet.

2. Use the Bed Bug Fact Sheet

Kari x 55555Lynn x 55555Greig x 55555Althea x 55555Lila x 55555

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as a template (delete allbed bug info and fill in withNorovirus info) located inthe g://drive. Request fromLynn when ready).

3. Test your information onMicrosoft Word for literacy

level. All FAQ sheets needto be at the 6th grad readinglevel or lower.

4. Send final draft to Kari andAlthea for proofing.

5. Work with Kari/Lila/Greig ondistribution of FAQ sheet.

Avian Flu To assist minimally in theresearch of how healthworkers and communityorganizers are educatingcommunity membersabout Avian flu.

1. Short-term project (4-6hours) that uses internetsearch engines to locatetraining activities beingused around the Country.Call if needed. Requestactivities to be faxed.

2. Generate idea list.

Internet primarily. Looking outsideof Multnomah County.

OurEnvironmentOur Health(OEOH) DisplayBoard

To create a display boardfor OEOH brochure to beused in clinics duringNational Clinic HealthWeek.

Work with Kari and theCommunity Service Team onproject outline andbrainstorming ideas

CS Team meeting 6/5/06 SEHC2:00pm 4:00pm

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**If the internship is an observational experience rather than an interactive project-based experience, thenthe activities in the work plan will job shadowing activities instead of activities with product relatedoutcomes.

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Intern Supervision/mentoring: During the internship, thesupervisor/mentor for the student will need to be available: 1) to ensurethat the activities identified in the work plan occur; 2) ensure thestudent has all the necessary tools to work on identified activities; 3)provide ongoing guidance and feedback as the student works on andcompletes the activities; and 4) be a liaison between the student andother staff members that the student will interact with as they performthe tasks and/or job shadow.

Internship length: If the college or university does not currently havean internship requirement for graduation, then the public health agencywill need to discuss the internship length during the marketing andrelationship building phases so that the academic institution canincorporate the internship into their class credit system. Otherwise, thelength of internships will vary from university to university.

Internship Log form: An internship log form template has beenincluded in the forms section of this manual. The log form will enablethe intern to track the number of hours they work, so the programcoordinator and supervisor can ensure 1) the student completes thework plan on time; 2) is exposed to all of the appropriate learningconcepts by the end of the internship period; that the student fulfillstheir internship hour requirement to receive university credit.

At the completion of the internship, it is vital that the public healthagency and the student both have an opportunity to evaluate thesuccess of the internship. This evaluation data will be necessary for thepublic health agency to identify 1) if the student benefited and enjoyedtheir experience; 2) areas the student recommends improvement in theprogram; 3) and if the internship benefited the local environmental

workforce. This information will assist the agency to improve theirprogram over time. It will also provide the student with substantivefeedback about their performance which can help improve their workpractices and success in future jobs.

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Intern Performance Evaluation (conducted by the public healthagency):The student evaluation form that the supervisor/mentor and/or program

coordinator fills out at the end of the internship should be provided bythe academic institution as part of their grading/credit criteria. Eachcollege or university will have their own evaluation form. If theinternship program coordinator does not receive it from the schooldirectly, they should ask the student for the form at the beginning of theinternship so the supervisor and/or program coordinator can becognizant of the types of information they will need to provide feedbackon at the completion of the internship.

Internship Program Evaluation (conducted by the student):

The student should be provided the opportunity to give feedback to thepublic health agency about the internship program. This data will beessential for the internship program to improve its structure andpractices over time. A template of an internship evaluation form isprovided in the next section.

Ideally, in addition to the information above, the public health agencywill want to track what happens to the student after graduation todetermine if they found a job in the environmental or public health field,however, as the student becomes transitory in pursuit of life and workexperiences post-graduation, this evaluation data may be difficult to

track. The agency should be able to track if any students were hiredwithin their own agency. This data may be beneficial for capacitybuilding activities like strategic planning, grant writing and resourceallocation.

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Internship Log Form Application Form

Internship Agreement Form

Student Questionnaire Form

Internship Orientation Schedule

Internship Packet Cover letter (Student)

Internship Packet Cover letter (Faculty)

Internship Evaluation Form

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3


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INTERN NAME: _________________________________

INTERNSHIP HOURS LOG

DATE NUMBER OF HOURS PROJECT

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INTERNSHIP APPLICATION

Name:

Address (number, street, city, state, zip code):

Phone Number (Home): Phone Number (alternate):

Academic Institution and Address:

University Contact Name: Contact Phone Number: Academic Program Studying:

Internship Period: Short-term (less than 10 weeks) Long-term (greater than 10 weeks)

Internship Start Date: Internship End Date:

Days of Week Intern Can Work: M Tu Wed Th F

Total Hours Per Week: Specify The Hours You Will Work Each Day:

What are three objectives you would like to achieve by the end of your internship?

What are three skills you would like to develop and/or enhance during your internship?

How will this internship support your future career goals and/or plans?

What type of internship do you desire (i.e. project-based, observation)?

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What Environmental Health topics are you most interested in?

1st choice _____________________________________________

2nd choice ____________________________________________

3rd choice ____________________________________________

What experience and or skills do you have working with environmentalhealth issues/topics?

Please rank the environmental health field(s) of interest that the studentis most interested in focusing their internship (1 most interested in 9least interested in):

1) Food safety/ licensed inspections (restaurant, pools, spas)

2) Nuisance Control

3) Lead Poisoning and Prevention4) Vital Records

5) Drinking Water6) Indoor Air Quality

7) Health Education

8) General overview of all

Does your school require an evaluation by Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health at the completion of your internship?

Please provide any additional information that will be useful in placing

you in a Multnomah County Environmental Health Internship?

Applicant signature Date

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INTERN QUESTIONAIRE

INTERN NAME:

On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 low ability 8 high ability), please rateyour skills, ability and/or comfort level to do the following type ofwork:

EDUCATION AND OUTREACH: RATING (1-8)

Communicate health risk information to diversecommunities and specific populations. Please specify anysecond languages you speak/experience with diversecommunities.

Conduct a public meeting including convene meeting,facilitate effective dialogue, take notes, assign tasks.

Distribute information to community members in aculturally competent way.

Work in cross-cultural / diverse communities. Pleasespecify any experience.Deal with people one-on-one with the community. Pleasehighlight any public speaking skills/experience.

COMPUTER AND TECHNICAL SKILLS:

Develop educational tools (i.e. fliers, brochures, powerpoint presentations). Please specify proficient computer

programs.Operate a computer with Microsoft Office Suite (Word,Excel, Access, and PowerPoint).Ability to research environmental health information onthe internet, analyze and present in a comprehensiveformat.

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Ability to analyze and interpret data.

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CLERICAL SKILLS:

Make phone calls to businesses or agencies to solicitinformation.File documents.Input environmental health data into an Access database.

POLICY SKILLS:

Knowledge of the regulatory and policy developmentprocess.Knowledge of environmental laws, regulation, guidelines,

standards, and criteria.Knowledge of issues that drive environmental policy on alocal, state and National level.

ADMINISTRATIVE/ORGANIZATIONAL/PROFESSIONALSILLS:

Ability to communicate by writing and oral meansregarding environmental health information and services.

Ability or organize surveys, questionnaires and other

informational gathering tools.

Ability to develop and utilize evaluation tools.Ability to interact with a wide range of professionals,become a member of a team and cooperate with otherprofessionals at a work site.Work with a variety of individuals with different viewpoints.Ability to write grants, proposals and reports

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH KNOWLEDGE:

Knowledge of basic principles of environmental and/orpublic healthKnowledge of epidemiologyKnowledge of Food safetyKnowledge of vector and nuisance control

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Knowledge of Lead poisoning and preventionKnowledge of Asthma and indoor air qualityKnowledge of vital records

Knowledge of Protocol of Assessing Community Excellencein Environmental Health (PACE-EH)

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INTERNSHIP ORIENTATION SCHEDULE

INTERN NAME:Topics

Applicable

To ThisInternshi

p

Date Time Subject ContactPerson

andextension

ConfidentialityPolicy

Safety Policy

Orientation to theagency

Orientation toHealth Education

Orientation toLead PoisoningPreventionprogramOrientation toFood SafetyProgramOrientation toVector andNuisance ControlOrientation toHealthy Homesand PACE-EHOrientation to

Food HandlerProgramOrientation toDrinking WaterprogramOrientation to CDTeam and SOD

Orientation togrants andcontracts


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May 1, 2005

Dear Student:

Thank you for your interest in doing an internship with Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health Services (MCEHS). MCEHS is comprised of a variety ofprograms and services including: Food Safety and Education, HealthEducation, Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in EnvironmentalHealth (PACE-EH), Vital Records, Lead Poisoning and Prevention, and Vectorand Nuisance Control. MCEHS will work diligently to create an internship thatwill provide you with beneficial information that you can apply throughout theduration of your academic schooling, and practical experiences that will assistyou in your career pursuits.

This packet contains documents that will assist MCEHS in creating an effectiveinternship that will benefit you as well as our agency. The packet contains:

Internship Application

Internship Agreement Form

Internship Scope of Work

Internship Job Description

Business card of MCEHS Contact Person

If you would like additional information about Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health Services and/or Multnomah County Vector and NuisanceControl, please review our website at www.mchealthinspect.org.

Please complete and return the Internship Application and InternshipAgreement Form to: Lynn George

Environmental Health Services727 NE 24th Ave.Portland, OR 97232(503) 988-3663 x [email protected]

Electronic versions are available by emailing Lynn George. After receiving thecompleted documents, Ms. George will contact you to set up an interview todiscuss an internship opportunity further. Thank you for consideration ofMultnomah County Environmental Health Services. We look forward to workingwith you.

Lynn GeorgeProgram Development Specialist

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(503) 988-3663 x 2815

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October 22, 2005

Dear Faculty:

Multnomah County Environmental Health Services recently received a 3-yearCenter for Disease Control Essential Services Capacity Building grant. A majorcomponent of the grant is to develop an environmental health internshipprogram. The purpose of the internship program is to train and educatestudents so they are better prepared to enter the workforce in environmentaland public health fields.

An important goal for our internship program is to develop relationships withlocal academic institutions so that they are aware of and can benefit from ourinternship program. MCEH would like to build ongoing collaborative

partnerships with institutions so that MCEH can 1) improve recruitment ofinterns to our agency and post internship opportunities on university websites,job boards, list serves, and make professors aware of our internship program;2) provide academic programs with environmental/public health informationso that more colleges and universities are aware of the learning opportunitiesthat exist at MCEH and include internships as part of their curriculum; 3) helpstudents learn what kinds of careers are available to them and their degree;and 4) identify if collaborative research projects exist with the school.Currently, our internship program has three different tracks:

1) Health Education. In this internship, a student will be introduced tothe following concepts: cross-cultural communication and training inintercultural settings; environmental health educational materials;determining target population needs; building partnerships with communityleaders; faith community; civic organizations; neighborhood associationsand other groups and affiliations; delivering presentations and conductinghealth promotion activities; gathering and analyzing demographic andcultural information about target populations; and evaluating healtheducation activities;2) Environmental Health Field-Based Internship. In this internship, astudent will be introduced to the following field-based concepts: food-borne, water-borne and vector-borne and communicable diseases;regulating and enforcing environmental and public health; EnvironmentalHealth Specialists role in public health safety; vector surveillance andcontrol, nuisance control, lead poisoning and prevention, small drinkingwater systems, the 2002 Food Code; inspecting restaurants, pools, hotelsand motels, mobile units, temporary events, warehouse/commissaries, andorganizational camps, the Food Handler certification program; and how

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health education supports regulated environmental health field-basedprograms and services; and3) General Internship. In this track, the internship can be tailored to thestudents interests and future career pursuits. We will expose the student

to a combination of Health Education, Environmental Health field workand/or program management/administration concepts. Some of the skillsthey will learn and utilize are: Communication skills to effectively workwith the general public, governmental agencies, businesses, and other jobrelated contacts; problem solving skills to learn how to apply ideas andacademic theory to meet desired outcomes; analytical skills to learn howenvironmental health services are developed and implemented based onrelevant, measurable data; organizational skills necessary to work onmultiple tasks and ideas simultaneously so that deadlines are met;interpersonal skills to work collaboratively with

4) fellow employees and management; and academic environmentalhealth theories to increase understanding how such concepts apply to reallife situations. This internship track is great for students who have nottaken many environmental or public health classes but would like to gainmore knowledge and understanding of environmental and public health.

Enclosed is an information packet that will provide your students and facultywith information about what kinds of learning opportunities exist at MCEH andhow to begin the process of designing an internship that will be beneficial.MCEH will work diligently to create an internship that will provide yourstudents with pertinent information that they can apply throughout theduration of their academic schooling, and practical experiences that will assistthem in their career pursuits. The packet contains:

Scope of work for each internship track:o Health Education;o Environmental Health Field-Based Experience;o General Internship

Student Internship packet which includes the following:o Student cover lettero Internship Applicationo Internship Agreement Form

o Internship Scope of Work (students select from three optionsabove)o Business card of MCEH contact personIf you or your student would like additional information about MultnomahCounty Environmental Health Services and/or Multnomah County Vector andNuisance control, please review our website at www.mchealthinspect.org.

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Please have interested students complete and return the InternshipApplication and Internship Agreement Form to:

Lynn GeorgeEnvironmental Health Services

727 NE 24th Ave.Portland, OR 97232(503) 988-3663 x [email protected]

Electronic versions are available by emailing Lynn George. After receiving thecompleted documents, Ms. George will contact you to set up an interview withthe student to discuss an internship opportunity further. Thank you forconsideration of Multnomah County Environmental Health Services. We lookforward to working with you and your students.

Sincerely,

Lynn GeorgeProgram Development Specialist Sr.

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MULTNOMAH COUNTY ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTHINTERNSHIP AGREEMENT

II. PURPOSE

The purpose of an Environmental Health internship is twofold:1) to develop stronger links between academic institutions andenvironmental health practices at the local level; and 2) toprepare students for the workforce. In doing so, MCEH hopesto create a larger workforce of employees who have practicalon-the-job skills and are able to apply theory into workplacepractice, from which to hire.

III. PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN ACADEMIA AND MULTNOMAHCOUNTY ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

In order to make the internship the best possible learningexperience for the student, a true partnership needs to occurbetween the placing academic institution and MultnomahCounty Environmental Health Services.

It is the academic institutions responsibility to teach thetheoretical aspects of the students academic choice of studyand to make sure the student will benefit from an internship

experience with Multnomah County Environmental HealthServices.

It is Multnomah County Environmental Healths responsibility toprovide an opportunity for the student to implement theseideas and theories into real job situations. Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health will support the student in developingthese skills by creating a positive, learning environment wherethe student will be able to practice the following:

1) Communication skills to effectively work with the general

public, governmental agencies, community-basedorganizations, businesses, and other job related contacts.

2) Problem solving skills to learn how to apply ideas andacademic theory to meet desired outcomes.

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3) Analytical skills to learn how environmental health servicesare developed and implemented based on relevant,measurable data.

4) Organizational skills necessary to work on multiple tasksand ideas simultaneously so that deadlines are met.

5) Interpersonal skills to work collaboratively with fellowemployees and management.

6) Academic environmental health theories to increaseunderstanding how such concepts apply to real lifesituations.

Multnomah County is not able to provide reimbursement forinternship activities. If issues or concerns arise during theinternship experience, both parties will communicate, problem

solve and identify solutions to make the experience assuccessful as possible for the student and Multnomah CountyEnvironmental Health Services.

IV. ENSURING THE STUDENT AND THE INTERNSHIPOPPORTUNITY ARE A GOOD MATCH.

To ensure that the internship is as beneficial and successfulexperience for both parties (the student and MCEH) aspossible, Multnomah County Environmental Health Services,would like to ensure that the student is a good match for the

organization. If any of the following questions are answeredNO, then the academic institution should discuss the placementfurther with the student before committing to the internshipand signing this agreement.

1. Did the student self-select MCEH for their internship?2. Will learning the 6 skills identified above

(communication, problem solving, analytical,organizational, interpersonal, and applyingenvironmental theory into practice) assist thestudent in the type of employment situation they

desire after they complete their academic field ofstudy?

V. INTERNSHIP CONTENT:

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Please rank the environmental health field(s) of interest thatthe student is most interested in focusing their internship (1most interested in 9 least interested in):

1) Food safety/ licensed inspections (restaurant, pools, spas)_____

2) Vector Control_____

3) Nuisance Control _____ 4) Lead Poisoning and Prevention

_____5) Vital Records

_____6) Drinking Water _____

7) Indoor Air Quality _____ 8) Health Education _____ 9) General overview of all _____

VI. INTERNSHIP AGREEMENT:

A. I _____________________________ from __________________________Academic placement representative

College/University

understand the role of internship partner and am fully

committed to this role for

the duration of _______________________s internship. I alsounderstand that

Student Namethis is a voluntary internship in which Multnomah County isunable to provide

reimbursement for internship activities.

Documents

Workforce Development Post-Secondary Internship Program