Newswise — Recognizing the environmental challenges that confront the nation, the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services is offering a new Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in Environmental Health Science and Policy, starting in Summer 2009. The program emphasizes regulatory policy and sustainability, and provides practical experience that takes full advantage of the program's Washington, D.C. location.
"Our incoming students are already dedicated to finding sustainable solutions to today's problems, from climate change to toxic chemicals to workplace safety," explains Environmental and Occupational Health (EOH) Department Interim Chair David Michaels, PhD, MPH. "They're also excited about coming to Washington as the Obama administration takes office. They realize that lawmakers and regulatory agencies here in the nation's capital have a profound influence on the national and world environment. Students choose GW because they know we can provide the science and policy training they need to pursue a career in environmental health."
The Environmental Health Science and Policy MPH is a 45-credit program that includes:
"¢ Environmental Health in a Sustainable World " integrating key concepts of environmental health with principles of sustainability to illustrate how public policies and practices at the local, national, and global level affect population health."¢ Protecting Public Health and the Environment: Policies, Politics, and Programs " reviewing the history, structure, and workings of the public health regulatory system through which we attempt to protect public health and the environment, with a particular focus on U.S. regulatory agencies."¢ Global Environmental and Occupational Health " examining environmental and occupational health issues at various stages in the development process.
Students will also complete the public health core courses required of all of the school's MPH students, and will have six elective credits that allow them to pursue their particular areas of interest, such as occupational safety and health, climate change, or child health.
The program emphasizes practical experience. Each student must complete a practicum with an agency or institution addressing environmental health issues. Many students end up with employment opportunities with these organizations, which include federal agencies including the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and the Food and Drug Administration, and advocacy organizations including Environmental Defense Fund and the Natural Resources Defense Council. "With our wealth of faculty experience and high faculty-to-student ratio, we can help students arrange field placements that suit their personal goals," says Michaels. "Washington offers countless valuable practicum opportunities, and our faculty members have the connections to help students find the positions best for them, both during and after their graduate studies."
The EOH Department is at the center of national and global conversations about using science to protect workers and the public from environmental hazards. Faculty and staff in the Department have earned a national reputation as researchers and leaders in articulating how public health science is best used in regulatory decision-making, and are called on frequently by congressional committees, federal agencies, national scientific organizations, international public health entities, and the media to discuss environmental hazards and the policies addressing them. The Department's Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy examines the use of science in public health decision-making; its website, http://defendingscience.org/, provides background on regulatory issues and in-depth case studies on hazards from bisphenol A to hexavalent chromium. News, analysis, and opinions from members of the EOH Department are also available at the public health blog The Pump Handle, http://thepumphandle.wordpress.com.
About The George Washington University Medical CenterThe George Washington University Medical Center is an internationally recognized interdisciplinary academic health center that has consistently provided high-quality medical care in the Washington, DC metropolitan area for 176 years. The Medical Center comprises the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the 11th oldest medical school in the country; the School of Public Health and Health Services, the only such school in the nation's capital; GW Hospital, jointly owned and operated by a partnership between The George Washington University and a subsidiary of Universal Health Services, Inc.; and the GW Medical Faculty Associates, an independent faculty practice plan. For more information on GWUMC, visit http://www.gwumc.edu.
The George Washington University's School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS)SPHHS was established in July 1997, bringing together three longstanding university programs in the Schools of Medicine, Business, and Education. Today, more than 900 students from nearly every state and more than 35 nations pursue undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral-level degrees in public health. http://www.gwumc.edu/sphhs/eoh
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