Legislators yesterday called for support in passing legislation that would emphasize the importance of public-health specialists by paving the way for the professional licensing of public-health administrators.
"Doctors and nurses are trained in medical treatment, but public health specialists are trained in prevention measures. Right now, there are about 1,000 people with degrees in public health in Taiwan," said Chang Hui-ju (
"While there is licensing for nurses, doctors and other healthcare workers, there is no formal licensing process for public-health specialists, leaving these experts out of the loop with several positions in the health department. It's a waste of education," Chang said.
According to Hsueh Jui-yuan (
"Because there is no official license for public health specialists, many qualified people with public-health degrees are unable to take positions with the DOH," Hsueh said.
Legislators Liao Ben-yen (廖本煙), Lai Ching-te (賴清德) and Lai Ching-lin (賴勁麟), along with several DOH officials, including Hsueh and DOH Deputy Minister Lee Long-teng (李龍騰), yesterday collaborated on merging two different versions of the draft Public Health Specialists Law (公共衛生師法), which had been drafted by legislators and the DOH.
The legislation is slated for discussion at a Legislative Yuan committee meeting on Dec. 24.
Liao said in a statement that it is easy to neglect overall public policy, but officials with public-health training are needed to design policies capable of handling complex issues like disease outbreaks, bioterrorism, National Health Insurance, hospital administration, biotechnological development and traditional Chinese medicine.
Chang said that although most people associate public-health officials with the DOH, there is also a need for public-health personnel in environmental protection and labor organizations.
The DOH's records indicate that only 15 percent of its personnel have any training in public health.
Furthermore, the lack of public-health training is most obvious among officials in management positions.
"Many public-health graduates are unable to find a niche for their line of work in our society, so they go abroad. This is a loss for Taiwan," Chang said.
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