NEHA Green Book

87

DEVELOPMENT AND USE OF NEHA's SELF-PACED LEARNING MODULES

In late 1975, the Bureau of Health Manpower, Health Resources Administration, awarded the National Environmental Health Association a contract to Identify the Roles and Functions of those practitioners in the field of environmental health who were tradi­ tionally known as Sanitarians. The work under this contract, guided by Dr. Larry Krone, produced the Role Delineation Model, which described the major and specific respon­ sibilities for three generalist-type positions at the entry level of each: POSITION I described the practitioner who is primarily involved in testing and sampling, inspections and public information activities performed under the general supervision of advanced staff. POSITION II described the practitioner who is primarily involved in investigative, consultative, planning, and educational activities performed under the general super­ vision of advanced staff. POSITION Ill described the practitioner who is primarily involved in supervisory, administrative, planning and enforcement activities under minimal supervision by advanced staff. The report of that first project, submitted to the Bureau of Health Manpower in January 1977, not only described the positions (thereby clarifying the practice of environmen­ tal health), it stated that the organization of manpower activities and methodologies to deal with or solve various environmental health problems describes a PROGRAM AREA APPROACH. Program areas reflect the major areas ofpractice for environmental health practitioners identified during the project:

l. Air Pollution Control 2. Food Protection 3. Hazardous Substances and Product Safety 4. Housing (Shelter) 5. Institutional Environmental Control 6. Land Use 7. Noise Control 8. Occupational Health and Safety 9. Radiation Safety 10. Recreational Areas and Waters 11. Solid Waste Management 12. Vector Control 13. Water Pollution Control 14. Water Supply

Since the Role Delineation project used only secondary data, with advisory commit­ tee input and staff research, the NEHA Project staff sought and received further federal funding for verification of the results through field surveys to obtain information directly from the field. Work began on the verification in June 1977 and was completed in June 1978. The task oriented responsibilities of the three position classifications described in the Role Delineation Model were verified and redefined through an objective and subjective

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