Many public health workforce reports have identified the political, economic, social, technological, and health-related trends that require the application of skills and approaches beyond traditional public health practices. In response, national public health agencies and consortia have called upon public health practitioners to build leadership and strategic capacity to address these emerging trends. To build this capacity nationwide as a way to address current and future public health challenges, a coordinated system of effective, efficient, and quality learning opportunities is needed.
The Public Health Learning Network’s (PHLN) Strategic Workforce Action Agenda (Action Agenda) asked four essential questions:
The Action Agenda emphasizes that a more robust and coordinated approach to workforce development is necessary to address the diversity and complexity of challenges faced by public health practitioners and provides action steps for the PHLN and recommendations for those who develop, provide, and evaluate learning.