EBPH – Applied Practice Experience Course
The MPH 5602- EBPH – Applied Practice Experience Course is offered during the first quarter of the second year. This course introduces students to the application of the principles of Evidence-Based approaches in the critical assessment of public health issues. This course emphasizes the principles of scientific reasoning, including how to identify evidence of the effectiveness of policies and programs, through the use of information systems, behavioral theory and program planning models to provide recommendations and solutions to public health issues. The first part of the course will provide theoretical understanding to help students develop evidence-informed practice. The second part of the course will develop students' critical appraisal skills and practical application of evidence through an Applied Practice Experience (APE). The APE is a planned, supervised, and evaluated practice experience where students engage in hands-on training in a site focused on public health. The main objective of the APE is for the student to develop two public health related products, identify at least five (5) competencies to build during their experience, and develop an e-Portfolio evidencing the attainment of the selected competencies.
Integrated Learning Experience
Integrated Learning Experience Research Projects.pdf
The Integrated Learning Experience is the culminating experience for students in the Master of Public Health (MPH) of the San Juan Bautista School of Medicine (SJBSM). The ILE offers students the opportunity to synthesize foundational and concentration competencies and integrate and apply the knowledge and skills obtained throughout the program. The ILE consists of a research project where students under mentors’ guidance identify a public health issue and develop a research question to produce a high-quality written manuscript to address a gap or a hypothesis with potential for publication. The ILE is divided into three courses offered during the second and final year of the program, one per quarter: MPH 9406 Integrated Learning Experience I, MPH 9506 Integrated Learning Experience II, and MPH 9606 Integrated Learning Experience III (Figure 1).
MPH 9406 Integrated Learning Experience I
The MPH 9406 Integrated Learning Experience I, is the first of three courses that comprises the culminating experience for students in the MPH program. This course will take the student through the various steps of research design and its application in the public health field to identify a specific and appropriate research topic and develop a comprehensive research proposal. Students will receive lectures and hands-on workshops with emphasis on research approaches, research question, specific aims/hypothesis, literature review, sampling, collection methods, statistical analysis, ethics in research, and research communication.
MPH 9506 Integrated Learning Experience II
The MPH 9506 Integrated Learning Experience II is the second of three courses that comprises the culminating experience for students in the Master of Public Health program. During this course students will start the implementation of the research proposal developed during the MPH 9406 course. Students will be provided with hands-on workshops on instrument validation, data collection process, data pre-processing techniques, data visualization tools, use of statistical software for quantitative and qualitative data analysis, and scientific manuscript writing. As part of this course, students will create a data collection plan, data codebook, database template, data collection training manual and the literature review and methodology section of a scientific manuscript following the journal Author Guidelines.
MPH 9606 Integrated Learning Experience III
The MPH 9606 Integrated Learning Experience III is the third and final course that comprises the culminating experience for students in the Master of Public Health program. During this course, students will be provided with hands-on workshops to practice data-analytic methods to conduct the analysis of the research data collected, work on the final sections of the manuscript following the journal author’s guidelines and present their final product through a final presentation to the community.
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU):
- Caribbean Center for Clinical Research
- Centers of Disease Control and Prevention - Dengue Branch
- Centro de Investigaciones, Educación y Servicios Médicos para la Diabetes
- Colegio de Administradores de Salud de Puerto Rico
- Comisión de Alimentación y Nutrición de Puerto Rico, Departamento de Salud de Puerto Rico
- Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of Puerto Rico
- Cuerpo de Reserva Médica de Puerto Rico
- Fundación Puertorriqueña del Riñón, Inc.
- Hospital Ryder, Inc.
- Instituto de Estadísticas de Puerto Rico
- Oficina del Procurador del Paciente (OPP)
- Puerto Rico Central Cancer Registry
- Sex+ TEAM Center for Evaluation and Sociomedical Research School of Public Health, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus
- VA Caribbean Healthcare System
- Consejo Renal de Puerto Rico, Inc.
- Americares
- Community Engagement and Outreach Core-UPR Medical Sciences Campus
- Iniciativa Comunitaria de Investigación, Inc.
- The Hispanic Alliance for Clinical and Translational Research (Alliance)
- Puerto Rico Department of Health, Tuberculosis Control Program
- Nutriendo a Puerto Rico
- Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust
