Main competences and skills to perform Essential Public Health Operations, offered by Schools of Public Health in four European countries: a short pilot report

To consider the stage of implementation of main competences and EPHO skills in selected schools of public health in four European countries-France, Poland, Portugal, and the UK. By use of visual analogue scales (VAS) ranging 1-5, the leads of three schools of public health (SPH) in each of the four countries, France, Poland, Portugal and the UK, reported the strength of intellectual and practical competences as well as skills to perform essential public health operations (EPHOs), offered by their education and training programmes. The self-reports indicated substantial coverage of the multidimensional public health discipline. Each country representation had its overall characteristic profile, and there was found noteworthy within-country as well as between-country variation. The schools should meet the challenge of establishing collaborative networks, which will be important for public health strategy making and implementation, for shaping a coherent public health profession, and thus ultimately for population health. This pilot report should be followed up by more systematically penetrating and comprehensive analyses to identify met and unmet needs in public health education and training.