Byline: Jonathan Kealing
Oct. 1--One of the best ways to improve the health of Kansans is to increase the number of workers trained in public health fields, according to Kansas University administrators.
And to ensure the state has more of those workers, KU is exploring creation of a stand-alone School of Public Health. Or, at the very least, the university could establish an Institute of Public Health. Either would mean more programs, more faculty and, it is hoped, a healthier Kansas.
Ed Ellerbeck, chairman of the Department of Preventative Medicine and Public Health at Kansas University Medical Center, said public health is the core factor in determining how long people live and why they die.
'Public health, as you look over the years, has accounted for the great majority of improvements in public health,' he said. 'Clean water. Better hygiene. That's public health. The actual medical care environment only deals with a small part of those reasons.'
Ellerbeck's department is one of at least four that would be rolled up into a larger public health organization. Other departments would include the Department of Preventative Medicine at KUMC-Wichita, the Department of Health Policy and Management, and the Department of Biostatistics.
All four departments currently offer master's level courses, including the master's of public health, which U.S. News and World Report has rated the sixth-best in the nation.
To create an accredited school, the university also would need to add at least three doctoral programs to the master's courses it offers. Preliminary estimates of the cost to create a School of Public Health peg the additional annual expense at approximately $2 million, in addition to the $3 million the existing departments already receive.
At a recent meeting with the Kansas Board of Regents, KUMC Executive Vice Chancellor Barbara Atkinson said that next fall the university would offer its first qualified doctoral program -- in health policy and management.
Ellerbeck said decisions on what programs to add hinges on the major health needs for the area.
'We need to work with health plans, the state, state agencies, to find out what the major needs of the state are,' he said. 'Also, employers can have a major role. They are facing huge issues relating to health care costs. We need to do a better job of making sure they use their health care dollars effectively.'
Ellerbeck said Kansas is at a point where public health workers are starting to age. By creating a school or institute of public health at KU, the university hopes to help maintain that work force, Ellerbeck said.
Dan Schober, a graduate student from Chicago, came to KU to pursue a joint degree in public health and applied behavioral sciences. Schober said he was drawn to KU because he can look at broad public health issues, while concentrating on specific behaviors that contribute to people's well-being.
For instance, he said, he can study the diabetes epidemic by looking at what and how much people eat.
Schober said that's the essence of public health.
'What many people don't think about in public health, it's not just diseases,' he said. 'It's also things that tend to be a little more social, like substance abuse and violence.'
Chancellor Robert Hemenway has also touted the benefits of boosting KU's presence in public health. At an August retreat with the regents, Hemenway said Kansas was one of few Midwestern states without a 'fully functioning School of Public Health.'
He told the regents that the ever-increasing number of life-threatening diseases, as well as the obesity and diabetes epidemics, will challenge the state in ways that a School of Public Health can help address.
For now, though, boosting KU's presence in public health is just an idea. It would require commitment of resources, as well as regents' approval of at least two new degrees, if the idea were to move forward.
At least one regent, however, has shown interest. Jill Docking, of Wichita, even inquired about whether the school or institute could be located in Wichita.
If that were to happen, it would be the first time a school would be based on KUMC's Wichita campus.
Docking, who is set to be approved by the Kansas Senate this month, said she's a huge believer in preventive medicine.
'It's especially important as baby boomers move into older age groups,' Docking said. 'As a society, we have a tendency to wait until something's broken to fix it. This is a way to get ahead of the problem.'
Docking said if the regents were to take up the matter and agree to spend the resources needed for a school or institute of public health, a Wichita location would be worth considering. Being in Wichita would enable the university to more easily tap into patients in many communities across Kansas.
To see more of the Journal-World, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.ljworld.com/.
Copyright (c) 2007, Journal-World, Lawrence, Kan.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
