UF College receives public health accreditation

The University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions has been awarded five-year accreditation as a school of public health by the Council on Education for Public Health, an independent agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. The college joins only 40 other U.S. universities that have received accreditation in public health at the college level.

"Our college has developed a unique educational model that integrates public health and health professions disciplines, two areas that have traditionally operated independently of each other," said Michael G. Perri, Ph.D., interim dean of the college. "By combining the public health focus on populations and prevention with the individual treatment perspective of the health professions, we have created important synergies in education, research and service. Our ultimate goal is improve people's lives by promoting healthy lifestyles and addressing critical issues, such as the health needs of a growing population of older adults and the prevention and control of outbreaks of infectious diseases."

The dual and complementary missions of the College of Public Health and Health Professions are critical to the future of UF's entire health-care enterprise, said David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president for health affairs and president of the UF&Shands Health System.

"Research in the college — epidemiologic, biostatistical, behavioral and health services — is especially pertinent to the national focus on improving health-care access and quality in a cost-effective manner, and the training of health professionals in key areas of need promotes high-quality care at Shands and at other health-care facilities in the state," Guzick said. "Accreditation by the national certifying body gives well-deserved recognition to Dean Perri and his faculty for the excellence of their college."

To develop a new public health enterprise, the college established departments of epidemiology and biostatistics; environmental and global health; and behavioral science and community health. The College of Public Health and Health Professions also added two Ph.D. programs, one in epidemiology in conjunction with the UF College of Medicine and the other in biostatistics. The college expanded the Master of Public Health degree and added a distance-learning certificate program in public health, and an online MPH degree is in the works. These programs complement the college's existing nationally recognized academic programs, including Ph.D. degree programs in clinical and health psychology, health services research and rehabilitation science; professional doctoral programs in audiology and physical therapy; master's degrees in health administration, occupational therapy and rehabilitation counseling; and a bachelor's degree in health science.

The College of Public Health and Health Professions has received $15.6 million in research funding over the past year with specific studies focused on disability and rehabilitation; the prevention of chronic health problems, such as obesity; aging; health disparities; and the identification and control of emerging diseases and environmental threats. The college has developed strong partnerships with the other UF colleges and with UF institutes and centers, including the Emerging Pathogens Institute, the Institute on Aging, the McKnight Brain Institute and the Center for Latin American Studies, Perri said. Several college faculty members are also collaborating with researchers from the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center to address the special health needs of the veteran population.