ADVANCEMENT OF THE PRACTICE
Needs Assessment of Environmental Health Professionals in Montana: A Post-COVID-19 Perspective
The COVID-19 pandemic created addi- tional demands and significantly exacerbated the stresses and strains on the profession in unforeseen ways. Two rapid national needs assessment surveys were administered by the National Environmental Health Asso- ciation (NEHA, 2020a, 2020b) during the pandemic. Despite eorts to begin the pro- cess of developing a deeper understanding of the changing landscape for EH professionals, there remains a lack of research to compre- hensively identify and characterize the scope, impact, conditions, and current and future needs of the profession (McCormick, 2020). The last comprehensive national study of EH professionals was completed more than 50 years ago (Brooks et al., 2019). While EH professionals in Montana (also referred to as sanitarians) face challenges and concerns similar to those reported nationally, they are faced with responsibilities for a vast geo- graphic area that includes 147,000 mi 2 . The remote and rural characteristics of towns, cit- ies, and residents across the state are further complicated by the decentralized nature of public health in Montana. Similar to their national counterparts, EH professionals in Montana in rural areas commonly face a lack of public health per- sonnel, resources, and training; some EH employees have no specific public health training or experience and must learn on the job (Denison, 2020; Rosenblatt et al., 2002). Health departments are hampered by stang shortages, unexpected retirements brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, low pay, and National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council David P. Gilkey, DC, PhD, REHS Montana Technological University Seana Westcarr-Gray, MS, JD University of Montana School of Public and Community Health Sciences Leigh Taggart, MPH University of Montana School of Public and Community Health Sciences Emily Weiler Montana Public Health Training Center Jeffrey Havens, RS/REHS Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services Priscilla Oliver, PhD
b45r#%5 We designed a cross-sectional study for environ- mental health (EH) professionals in Montana as a follow-up to a needs assessment conducted in 2020 by the Montana Public Health Workforce Development Group. A 57-question survey was developed to deepen the understanding of the profession regarding demographics, work status and position, education and licensure, work prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, professional preparation and continuing educa- tion, job satisfaction, recruitment and retention, and emerging issues. The survey was administered electronically in 2022 to all health depart- ments in Montana and had a 74% response rate. The results revealed that most EH professionals in Montana are predominately White. Re- spondents reported being adequately trained but highlighted that ad- ditional training would be beneficial. Job-related stress, staffing levels, and salary levels were identified as areas of concern. Furthermore, re- spondents reported that they are otherwise fulfilled by the purposeful nature of their jobs. Our study was successful in capturing an updated view of the challenges facing EH professionals in Montana. Using these findings, the Montana Environmental Health Association and the Mon- tana Public Health Training Center are developing training solutions for these professionals.
Introduction The field of environmental health (EH) has advanced considerably, evolving from prac- tices rooted in ancient civilizations such as the Egyptians, Minoans, Greeks, and Romans (Duy, 1992; see Supplemental for a back- ground of the profession at www.neha.org/ jeh-supplementals). While many of the duties and expectations remain the same today, EH has become more complex and specialized, which has resulted in a struggle to define and categorize this workforce as job responsibili-
ties can be vastly encompassing (McCormick, 2020). Today, the EH professional must pos- sess expertise in multiple areas including drinking water quality, wastewater manage- ment, healthy homes, food safety, vectors and public health pests, and emerging issues (Brooks et al., 2019; National Environmen- tal Health Science and Protection Accredita- tion Council [EHAC], 2019). Moreover, the evolution of technology and information dis- semination has led to ever-expanding respon- sibilities (Gerding et al., 2020).
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Volume 86 • Number 2
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