Seltzer - 101 + Careers in Public Health

Contents

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101+ Careers in Public Health, Second Edition

Beth Seltzer

101 Careers in Counseling

Shannon Hodges

101+ Careers in Gerontology, Second Edition

C. Joanne Grabinski

101 Careers in Social Work, Second Edition

Jessica A. Ritter and Halaevalu F. Ofahengaue Vakalahi

101 Careers in Psychology

Tracey E. Ryan

101 Careers in Education

John S. Carlson and Richard L. Carlson

101 Careers in Healthcare Management

Leonard H. Friedman and Anthony R. Kovner

Careers in Health Information Technology

Brian T. Malec

201 Careers in Nursing

Joyce J. Fitzpatrick and Emerson E. Ea

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Beth Seltzer, MD, MPH, is a clinical and public health physician, board certified in public health and general preventive medicine. She is currently working on an Indian reservation in western Washington, where her role has included everything from treating the common cold to leading new public health initiatives. Prior to her medical career, Dr. Seltzer was a documentary film producer, earning multiple awards for her work. More recently, she served as a writer and consultant for the Discovery Health and Discovery Channel television networks, developing content for educational television shows and interactive media directed at both physicians and general audiences. She has also written for the Careers in Public Health newsletter from the American Public Health Association.

Second Edition

BETH SELTZER, MD, MPH

Copyright 2016 Beth Seltzer

All rights reserved.

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Acquisitions Editor: Sheri W. Sussman

Composition: Newgen KnowledgeWorks

ISBN: 978-0-8261-9598-2

e-book ISBN: 978-0-8261-9599-9

15 16 17 18 19 / 5 4 3 2 1

The author and the publisher of this Work have made every effort to use sources believed to be reliable to provide information that is accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The author and publisher shall not be liable for any special, consequential, or exemplary damages resulting, in whole or in part, from the readers use of, or reliance on, the information contained in this book. The publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Seltzer, Beth, author.

[101 careers in public health]

101+ careers in public health / Beth Seltzer.Second edition.

p. ; cm.

One hundred and one plus careers in public health

One hundred one plus careers in public health

Preceded by 101 careers in public health / Beth Seltzer. 2011.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-8261-9598-2ISBN 978-0-8261-9599-9 (e-book)

I. Title. II. Title: One hundred and one plus careers in public health. III. Title: One hundred one plus careers in public health.

[DNLM: 1. Public Health. 2. Career Choice. 3. Vocational Guidance. WA 21]

RA440.9

362.1023dc23

2015031722

Printed in the United States of America by McNaughton & Gunn.

This book is dedicated to my parents,
Lynn and Robert Seltzer, who have been right there
with me through my own 101 careers.

Contents

Preface

When I was in medical school, I was constantly frustrated by the number of people suffering from preventable diseases. Why was all the effort going into treating obesity-related diabetes instead of preventing it? We knew that a lot of our pediatric asthma patients would turn up in the emergency room again at some point after we discharged them from the hospital. Why werent we figuring out why this kept happening, instead of accepting that these kids would be on a merry-go-round of asthma attacks and treatment? Teenagers with serious sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), adults with untreated mental illnessthe number of people who could have been helped by population-level efforts was astonishing to me.

I spent about 3 years railing against all this, until one of my teachers finally introduced me to the world of public health. Here were the people who shared my frustration. Here was a whole world of doctors, nurses, social workers, research scientists, administrators, and activists trying to get those kids off the asthma merry-go-round, trying to shift the way America eats and convince us to ramp up our exercise levels to halt the epidemic of diabetes, and working with teenagers to encourage safer sexual practices and slow the spread of STDs.

I have since completed my medical residency and become board certified in preventive medicine, a specialty with a focus on public health. My fellow prev med physicians are an extraordinary group of people, and I think most of us are delighted to have found our way here. As I was interviewing people for this bookhealth inspectors, civil engineers, pharmacists, and a range of other expertsevery single one of them shared his or her excitement about being part of public health.

I had a wonderful time writing the first edition of 101 Careers in Public Health. I met public health professionals from all across the country and in a wide array of jobs. I got to have fascinating conversations as I learned about the good work they were doing.

For this new edition, I had the privilege to include some new interviewees. The original career profile interviews have otherwise been left largely intact. Even though not all of the interviewees are still in the same roles, Ive reviewed every one of the profiles and theyre just as useful now as when they were first written.

Where I could, Ive included Profile Updates with interviewees new roles, titles, and workplaces. I think its a great way to see how different public health careers can evolve. Ive also added an expanded chapter on global health, some insight into public health careers in the military, thoughts on making the decision between a medical or a public health degree, and advice from two expert career counselors. I hope you will find the new information useful!