Learning, assessment and professional identity development in public health training

Area of Science:

• Public Health Training
• Medical Education
• Professional Identity Formation

Background:

• Professional identity is crucial for trainees entering public health programs.
• Integrating knowledge acquisition and assessment is key to developing this identity.
• This study examines this integration within a UK public health training context.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the integration of knowledge accumulation and assessment in public health training.
• To understand how this integration impacts professional identity development.
• To identify challenges and potential improvements in the training process.

Main Methods:

• Conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 registrars in the West Midlands Public Health Training Programme.
• Utilized pre-interview questionnaires for background information.
• Employed a thematic content analysis approach for data interpretation.

Main Results:

• Identified a significant lack of integration between academic learning, workplace experience, and the professional examination process.
• Registrars perceived academic and workplace learning as separate, parallel activities.
• Passing the examination was initially key to identity formation, later superseded by peer/colleague opinions; a Master's degree influenced workforce acceptance.

Conclusions:

• The disconnect between assessment and learning negatively impacts professional identity development in public health trainees.
• There is a need to re-evaluate how assessment and learning can be more effectively combined.
• Recommendations for improved integration are suggested to foster stronger professional identities.