An evaluation of introductory courses in environmental health

Introductory courses in environmental health are intended for doctors newly appointed to the emergency duty rotas of the Medical Officer for Environmental Health. Three courses have been held in Bristol between 1984 and 1987. They have been evaluated with a problem management questionnaire completed by 44 of the 47 participants before and after the teaching. Seventy-four per cent (23/31) of a comprehensive list of aspects that could be considered were mentioned by less than 30% of respondents at the beginning of the course and 65% (20/31) of these aspects were mentioned by at least 30% more participants at the end of the course than before it. There were no differences in these patterns between respondents who attended the different courses. The findings support the need and educational worth of such courses, and help to identify learning deficiencies. Problem management questionnaires are useful in their evaluation.