Supporting colleagues during a period of change

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Supporting colleagues during a period of change

• Tony Lewis
• Principal Education Officer, CIEH

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This seminar will..

• Explore key drivers for change within regulatory
  services and the potential impact of these
  drivers on EHPs and the wider profession
• Examine the issue of competence and the need
  for education and professional development
  systems for members to be fit for purpose
• Give you an opportunity to raise questions and
  discuss the implications of the emerging
  landscape for the future of environmental health

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• May you live in interesting times

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The Chinese Curse

• Often attributed (mistakenly) to Confucius
• The first of three curses of increasing severity,
  the other two being
• May you come to the attention of those in
  authority
• May you find what you are looking for

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Interesting times

• The international financial position
• The public-sector finances
• Better regulation
• Local government re-organisation
• General election

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Coming to the attention of those in authority

• Prof Sir Hugh Pennington
• Sarah Anderson
• The Labour Government LBRO
• The Conservative Party - Sir David Arculus and
  Ken Clarke

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(No Transcript)
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Those in authority want..

• EHPs to be
• Competent
• Proportionate
• Aware of risk
• Experts/specialists
• Professional
• Fit for purpose
• Capable of doing more for less!

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What are we looking for?

• Continued relevance
• Influential
• Respected
• To be needed
• Still here - protecting public health and
  providing good careers for the next generation!

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How we might find what were looking for

• In practice and as a profession
• Embrace change and the opportunities it presents
• Be flexible
• Be prepared to sacrifice tradition
• Tradition is an explanation for acting without
  thinking Grace McGarvie, American Political
  Scientist

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So what is CIEH doing?

• Changing the culture of 300 disparate local
  authorities is impossible for us
• BUT.we have an ability to
• Influence those in authority
• Support colleagues in a time of change
• Influence the thinking of the next generation of
  EHPs

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• Influencing those in authority

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Influencing

• Worked with HSE and partners on the development
  of the RDNA toolkit
• Working with FSA, DEFRA, CLG, TSI and others on
  the competence frameworks for food safety,
  housing, port health etc
• Working with LBRO on competence, leadership and
  world class regulation
• Liaised with BERR and Sarah Anderson on her
  review of the support and guidance given to
  business by regulators

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Influencing (2)

• Gave evidence to Pennington and supported others
  in doing so
• Smoke freedom
• Significant changes, through lobbying, to the
  Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act,
  especially provisions relating to exclusions from
  necessity to consult with the primary authority
• Olympics (2012) working with London 2012 Food
  Advisory group and LOCOG
• Sunbeds working with a range of NGOs across the
  UK to address this key PH issue
• Contributing to key definitions of water poverty
  to the Walker Review of charging for household
  water and sewerage services

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• Supporting colleagues in a time of change

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Building competence
The Professional Development Stairway to
Competence Lewis and Brennan 2006
Excellence ?
Competence
Capability to competence achieved via
experience, peer review reflective practice
Capability
Competencies
Skills
The journey to capable as an EHP is via the
qualification process
Knowledge
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Competence why?

• A formal process that ensures that practitioners
  are matched appropriately to tasks
• Process started in central government
• Cascaded into government agencies and departments
• Became an issue for EH following the HSEs (2005)
  SITNA report
• Now a facet of world class regulation
• Featured in the Anderson Review and Pennington

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Where are we now

• Framework for HS (RDNA) complete and launched in
  January 09
• Framework for health protection complete and
  launched (by Skills for Health as National
  Occupational Standards)
• Framework for PH complete and launched (Cube)
• Frameworks developed and about to be piloted in
  food safety and housing
• Framework for port health and contaminated land
  are under development
• Discussions under way with BRC to develop a
  framework for commercially-based EH
• Too many frameworks? - LBRO and partners (incl.
  CIEH) are working on a combined framework for
  local government regulatory services supported
  by LACoRS

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RDNA
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RDNA
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RDNA
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RDNA
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RDNA
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RDNA
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Why bother?

• Encourage career-long learning
• Maintain and develop skills in a changing
  environment
• Maintain the disciplines of learning and
  continuous professional development developed
  during training
• Encourage and support more effective development
  action planning
• Encourage and support reflective learning

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Why bother?

• More structured, consistent and robust approach
  to identifying development needs at individual
  and line manager level
• Support to Managers to help meet some of these
  locally
• Support to individuals in developing themselves
• Provides a shield against challenge to our
  decisions that is far more robust than a
  qualification certificate and experience
• Once a standard is out there and endorsed by a
  body of some standing it will become compulsory
  by virtue of legal reference

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CIEH will deliver.......

• Consultancy services to local authorities to
• Train managers to appraise staff under RDNA
• Train managers to advise staff on addressing
  development needs
• To quality assure the RDNA processes
• To provide complete competence support to local
  authorities and others
• Direct support to members (in partnership with
  Universities and others) to acquire, maintain and
  develop competencies

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• Influence the thinking of the next generation of
  EHPs

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Curriculum 2007

• Launched in 2007 and until 2009 seen as an
  extremely radical change to the way that we
  produce EHPs
• EHPs qualifying via this route will not be of the
  traditional one-size fits all style
• Students, Universities and employers are having
  to make choices

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Curriculum 2007 - rollout

• It has already started at two Universities, the
  remainder will roll-out over the next 12 months
  or so
• First specialist programmes to operate from 09/10
  academic year
• The first graduate is likely to emerge in 2010/11

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Curriculum 2007 - why?

• Multi-factorial
• Recognition of contemporary economic, political
  and practice-led landscapes
• Competence frameworks and the need for
  practitioners to meet them
• Cant pack anymore into BSc (Hons) EH
• The placement desert and the need to create new
  placement options

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Curriculum 2007
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Radical?

• Yes in 2007!
• But in 2009?
• Recession
• Anderson Review
• Governments response to Sarah Anderson
• Pennington

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Current EHRB Certificate of Registration
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New EHRB Certificate of Registration
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Take Note!

• Has been registered as an Environmental Health
  Practitioner with specialisms in Food Safety and
  Environmental Protection having also achieved
  generalist level in Health Safety and Public
  Health

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Implications for employers

• Employers must
• Refrain from assuming that one size fits all
• Assess the competence of all new applicants for
  work
• Match the competence of applicants to the
  available posts
• Provide support to staff to maintain and enhance
  their competence
• Manage staff such they and their organisation is
  not exposed to unnecessary risk

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Curriculum Strengths

• The curriculum is fully modularised and is,
  therefore, extremely flexible
• Dovetails with the current competence agenda and
  the views expressed by Sarah Anderson and is
  supportive of Pennington
• Allows CIEH to accredit a much wider range of
  courses than hitherto
• Provides the foundation for CIEH to further
  expand its overseas accreditation network and to
  bring overseas EHPs into membership
• Mixes GP and specialisms - an each-way bet that
  demonstrates flexibility

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Weaknesses

• Has been seen as being too radical by some
  Universities
• Requires wide-ranging support for specialists who
  wish/need to change their specialism difficult
  for LG (?) a new paradigm for Universities and
  challenging for CIEH
• Demand has the potential to lead to an uneven
  distribution of new graduates
• Requires a considerable investment by CIEH in the
  production of high quality marketing materials
• Mixes GP and specialisms - an each-way bet that
  demonstrates a lack of clarity

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Opportunities

• To finally shake off the view that EH is a local
  government profession
• Potentially enables EH and CIEH to become a much
  broader church and to welcome into membership
  persons who meet competence frameworks -
  equivalence !
• Expand CIEH influence and membership overseas
• Mutual recognition agreements with other
  professional bodies within the EH community and
  beyond
• To formally tie together the educational and
  professional continua, with each supporting the
  other

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Threats

• The credit crunch, the state of public finances
  and local government re-organisation
• Events overtake us LBROs direction, the
  election etc
• Failure of employers to take their
  responsibilities seriously for staff development
• Failure of employers to provide placements
• HE funding and student fees
• Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning
  Bill

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Curriculum 2007 - the international dimension

• CIEH has, to date, accredited two BSc programs in
  Malaysia and an MSc in Hong Kong
• Universiti Teknologi MARA, Kuala Lumpur
• MAHSA University College, Kuala Lumpur
• Hong Kong University
• More to follow
• Discussions ongoing with Universiti Putra
  Malaysia
• Discussions ongoing with institutions in Saudi
  Arabia, Nigeria, Botswana etc
• Malaysian and Hong Kong graduates will have the
  opportunity to submit ELP and take CIEH
  Professional Exams
• EHRB Certificates of Registration endorsed for
  Malaysia and Hong Kong etc

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International Curriculum

• Developed by Tony Lewis, Maurice Brennan and
  Prof. Steve Konkel on behalf of the International
  Faculty Forum of IFEH
• Hopefully adopted by IFEH by September 2010
• Designed as a means of pass-porting core EHP
  knowledge, skills and competencies around the
  world
• Easy the process of EHPs moving from one country
  to another

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In summary

• We are undoubtedly experiencing interesting times
• We have come to the attention of those in
  authority and, right now, they expect us to
  change and deliver change
• The changes to come will be profound
• We have to survive and prosper and that will
  require flexibility and an ability to throw off
  the past
• We are seeking to influence the agents of change
• But, at the same time, we are planning for and
  beginning to deliver the change that those in
  authority expect to see

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• Questions