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Integration of environmental consciousness
has pervaded all aspects of society. Private industry
and governments at all levels must maintain substantial
programs to carefully manage the environmental
impacts of their activities. This has resulted
in a host of opportunities for the well-prepared
professional.
The work is both meaningful and important.
Preparation as an environmental health professional
can be done through completion of a four-year
academic program in environmental health science.
Academic programs that have met rigorous standards
in environmental health science are recognized
by the National Environmental Health and Protection
Accreditation Council (EHAC). Graduates of these
programs are well prepared to make important life-long
contributions.
Environmental Health Science and Protection
People around the world have recognized that a
healthy environment is paramount in maintaining
and preserving a good quality of life. A degraded
environment results in immediate threats to the
health of the public. A degraded environment provides
future generations with a world of less potential,
and of less beauty. At this time of rapidly expanding
global populations, internationalization of commerce,
and rapid industrialization, contributions of
environmental health scientists were never more
important. Future and current generations are
dependent on decisions made now.
Environmental health professionals must be prepared
as scientists. For example, air pollution leaving
an industrial smokestack must be understood from
the aspect of chemistry (the composition of the
plume), physics (where the pollutants will go)
and biology (how the pollutant will affect life).
However, understanding the problem is only a start.
The challenge comes in preventing and mending
problems within a web of science, politics, economics
and quality of life issues. The environmental
health scientist must be a problem solver. The
key question always to address is how can the
risk of adverse effect be minimized in a practical,
productive way. Thus, educational preparation
includes the social sciences and communications
- the successful environmental health scientist
works with the public, industry, and government
to find the best approach to solve complex problems.
The origins of environmental health science are
within public health, working with local communities
protecting the environmental sanitation of food
and water supplies. Coincident with the environmental
movement of the 1970's, demand for environmental
health scientists expanded to encompass such diverse
fields as control of toxic chemicals, hazardous
wastes, and air pollutants. Central to these opportunities
was the need to involve environmental health scientists
prepared as generalists, holding both a comprehensive
understanding of basic scientific principles and
the ability to integrate information to implement
practical solutions to difficult problems.
Today, the environmental health scientist remains
in demand to fulfil traditional roles, including
that of a sanitarian in a local health department.
Sanitarians perform both a regulatory and a educational
function, often explaining to the public and others
in their local communities how to provide necessary
environmental protections. However, many other
settings now demand the use of trained environmental
health professions. Environmental toxicologists
and epidemiologists explore the link between environmental
quality and disease. Industrial hygienists work
within the industrial workplace, evaluating risks
to workers and implementing controls and programs
to save lives. The rewards of the work are more
than monetary - they involve making a contribution
to the workplace, to the community, to the country,
and even to the world.
Academic Programs
In the United States, 23 programs have been recognized
as achieving excellence by the National Environmental
Health and Protection Accreditation Council (EHAC).
These programs (see accompanying table) all have
curricula that are grounded in the basic sciences
supplemented by specialized course work. All programs
have an internship or other field-based experience
as part of their educational curriculum, offering
tremendous opportunity to gain practical knowledge
about the working environment.
Accredited Environmental Health
Programs in the United States
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Boise State University, Idaho
California California State University,
Colorado State University, Colorado
East Central University, Oklahoma
Eastern Kentucky University, Kentucky
Illinois State University, Illinois
Mississippi Valley State University, Mississippi
Old Dominion University, Virginia
Oregon State University, Oregaon
Western Carolina University, North Carolina
Wright State University, Ohio
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Bowling
Green State University, Ohio
California State University, California
East Carolina University, North Carolina
East Tennessee State University, Tennessee
University of Georgia, Georgia
Indiana State University, Indiana
Missouri Southern State College, Missouri
Ohio University, Ohio
Salisbury State University, Maryland
University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin |
Preparation to enter these programs largely reflects
high school emphasis on the sciences. After entering
college, the typical student concentrates on general
education and science preparatory courses for
the first two years. The final two years spent
pursuing the degree includes concentrated study
in specialized courses on environmental health.
Courses in such areas as water quality, air quality,
food safety, toxicology, epidemiology, vector
control, microbiology, industrial hygiene, environmental
economics, and environmental law and regulatory
policies make for an interesting and challenging
curriculum . Typically it takes four years to
earn a baccalaureate degree.
Most graduates of environmental health programs
go directly to work, functioning effectively in
professional capacities. Many go on to receive
national or state certification such as "Registered
Sanitarian" or "Registered Environmental
Health Specialist." Other graduates elect
to continue with their formal educations, pursuing
master and doctorate degrees. The science- based
curriculum also makes environmental health an
excellent major for the student considering post-graduate
professional school, such as in medicine.
Additional information about the accredited environmental
health science programs in the United States is
available at: http://depts.washington.edu/nehspac/
Programs are offered around the country, offering
international students a variety of locales within
a consistent academic framework. In addition to
providing information about environmental health
programs in general, the Web site provides links
to each of the individual environmental health
science programs. Each program offers its unique
perspective within a consistent framework preparing
the environmental health professional for a rewarding
career.
Author
Gary Silverman, Professor
Environmental Health Program
Bowling Green State University
silverma@bgnet.bgsu.edu
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