THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES

Department of Community Health & Psychiatry

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

DrPH CORE COMPETENCIES

Name: SIMONE SPENCE

Student ID number: 95-004652 Cohort # : 6

Date: 18.9.2016
You are encouraged to complete the following as part of the ongoing self evaluation and assessment process. This is also designed to assist you in
reflecting on the types of electives and placement that you may wish to pursue. Anyone who has not yet submitted a CV is asked to do so

1. Study the following competencies. Rank your perceived mastery of each of these on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the lowest and 10 the
highest. Please also include a summary score for each of the eight major competency areas.

2. Indicate which of these competencies you would wish to

a. address immediately (A),
b. within the next 6 -12 months (B),
c. within 1-2 years (C)
d. or later (D)
e. not applicable (E).
3. Brief comments to clarify or explain your choices are welcome. You may also indicate any placement you think you need or are interested in
to help develop the stated competency.
4. If there are any specific skills not mentioned here that you wish to address during your course of study, please add these to the list.
 DrPH Core Competencies Level of mastery Time to address Comments

Competency 1: Leadership

1.1 Create and articulate a personal philosophy for 7 A Personal philosophy needs to revisited
leadership and refined to reflect my development
over time.
1.2 Embrace a vision and philosophy for professional 6 B
leadership in public health

1.3 Apply current leadership theories and concepts to the 5 B Need more opportunities to put theory
analysis and resolution of organizational leadership into action.
challenges
1.4 Demonstrate the ability to mentor/coach future leaders 7 B Need to develop additional skills to
facilitate mentorship of colleagues and
supervisees.
1.5 Demonstrate the ability to supervise effectively 7 A

Competency 2: Analytical Thinking

2.1 Obtain, evaluate, critique and integrate results from 6 A

multiple studies to come to a position on matters of
public health importance
2.2 Demonstrate the ability to analyze issues and problems 6 A
in public health using critical evaluation of information
from a variety of sources
2.3 Demonstrate the knowledge of and ability to utilize 7 A
commonly used data and health information systems
within our health services to guide public health
practice
2.4 Demonstrate skills in systems thinking* 5 B Require work in this area to develop this
skill of a systems approach to problem
solving.

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, UWI 2016
 Competency 3: Policy Analysis and Program Development

3.1 Demonstrate the skills of analyzing policies and 6 B

assessing their potential impact on health

3.2 Demonstrate skills in needs assessments, development 7 C

of program objectives and conceptual frameworks

3.3 Demonstrate the use of evidence and other factors in 7 B

the formulation of policy

3.4 Demonstrate skills in program evaluation 5 C

Economic analysis

Competency 4: Public Health Practice

4.1 Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the core areas 6 B

of public health theory and practice

4.2 Demonstrate an understanding of the principles 7 B

involved in the prevention and control of routine
conditions of public health importance
4.3 Demonstrate an appreciation of the impact of the socio- 6 B
cultural determinants on the health of the populations

4.4 Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of local, 6 C

Regional and International regulations on the health
status of nations
4.5 Demonstrate an ability to effectively lead the 7 A
investigation and response to a disease outbreak or an
event that adversely impacts health

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, UWI 2016
 Competency 5: Working in Multidisciplinary Teams

5.1 Demonstrate an understanding of and value for the role 7 C

of different disciplines in addressing public health
challenges
5.2 Demonstrate good interpersonal skills to promote team 7 A
work and enhance productivity

5.3 Demonstrate the ability to manage and resolve conflicts 7 A

at the workplace

5.4 Demonstrate an ability to influence and motivate others 6 B

Competency 6: Communication and Advocacy for Health

6.1 Articulate advocacy approaches that are grounded in 5 C Advocacy is a skill that needs to be
scientific evidence and persuasively present to developed.
stakeholders at various levels of influence
6.2 Demonstrate an ability to plan social mobilization/social 7 B
marketing strategies in support of public health
programs
6.3 Demonstrate an ability to adopt an effective risk 6 A
communication approach

6.4 Document and demonstrate written and oral 7 B

communication skills through publications and reports
and presentations and interviews

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, UWI 2016
 Competency 7: Strategic Planning and management
7.1 Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of 7 B
alternative models of health care delivery system

7.2 Apply principles of strategic planning and 7 A

project/program management

7.3 Apply basic human relations skills to 7 A

program/organizational management including team
building negotiation and performance evaluation
7.4 Demonstrate an ability to use sound financial principles 7 B
in the planning cycle of the health care services

7.5 Demonstrate a sound understanding of economic 5 C Weak in the area of health economics.
analysis for health

7.6 Demonstrate the ability to make sound managerial 8 B

decisions

Competency 8: Research

8.1 Demonstrate the ability to apply epidemiologic study 5 B

methods and biostatistics to evaluate the determinants
and risk factors related to specific public health issues
8.2 Demonstrate the ability to identify information gaps and 5 C
to design appropriate new studies that will increase the
body of knowledge necessary for improved public
health practice
8.3 Demonstrate the ability to write grant proposals 7 B
following the formats of various funding institutions

*Systems thinking: an approach to problem solving where you view problems as parts of an overall system rather than reacting to the present outcome or
situation and possibly contributing to the further development of the undesired issue or problem.

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, UWI 2016