Surviving and Thriving at a Hospital Job as a Public Health Specialist

Early careerists in public health often end up in healthcare. However, healthcare has a
different view of public health than community or government jobs. My work as a public health
specialist in a large regional hospital has given me a front row seat to the challenges and
rewards for a public health professional. As a public health specialist, I have worked in several
non-medical areas but the American healthcare system has opened my eyes to a completely
new perspective on public health practice and implementation.

I have worked in public health for over 3 years. I have been in recreation centers, county
offices, and universities. Yet, these do not compare to the large-scale interventions needed for a
hospital to operate. I quickly learned I must adjust to the fast-paced hospital environment.
Hospitals must consistently change systems to compensate for the flux of incoming patients and
staff changes. In the past, I could operate health interventions at my own pace based on the
community's needs, but in a hospital, I must comply with operations, events, department
schedules, as well as the community. On the other hand, hospitals provide incredible resources
with their concentration of high-quality resources and consistent funding. It is also beneficial to
have direct access to staff who experience the effects of illness and poor health choices. It
helps me create more advanced programs that are effective for the local community. Due to the
plentiful resources, including helpful staff, I could not provide such effective programs outside a
healthcare setting. While healthcare is a niche field for public health specialists, the experiences
provided cannot be compared to any other.

Building relationships across departments is crucial for success in a hospital. I currently
work in two departments: Trauma Services and Cardiovascular and Stroke Services. My main
task in these departments is to prevent accidental injuries and long-term heart issues in the
community by collaborating with trauma and cardiac services within the hospital. Despite the
hospital’s size, I was surprised to see how closely these departments work together to provide
optimal care to patients through diverse perspectives within the healthcare world. When
collaborating with these departments to implement health programs for the community, they
instantly networked to get the resources I needed to create successful programs. For instance, I
run a babysitting course for middle schoolers through SafeSitter. Both trauma and cardiac
nurses provided me contacts for schools nurses and parent groups immediately upon
recommendation. They also had the resources I needed through the hospital system to market
this program online. This led to high participation rates with consistent attendance, something I
have struggled to accomplish in county offices and recreational center settings due to low
resources and smaller networks. While such collaborations are possible in other fields, the
networking systems and resources of healthcare settings are incredible for public health
specialists.

While adjusting to the healthcare world as a public health specialist, I have gained so
much knowledge and perspective about public health through other lenses. I would like to
dedicate this next section to tips and tricks I wish I understood about the non-clinical side of
healthcare.

🤍First, remember that hospitals must focus on patient care. Unlike other fields of
public health, even community programs must center around hospitalized
patients.

🤍Second, most hospitals and clinics offer great resources and funding. Yet, they
also have complex administrational systems that contribute to operations,
funding, and the tasks of the people around you. Trust the process, and
understand there are many systems in-the-work even if you don’t see it.

🤍Third, clinical workers often prioritize medical interventions because that is the
perspective they have trained in. Therefore they might not see the value in
preventative interventions. While clinical workers have been trained for years to
understand medical interventions, we, as public health professionals, have been
trained to focus on preventing harm and disease before treatment is necessary.
To doctors or hospital administrators with medical degrees, it may be harder to
prove your benefit because there is not always a direct and/or visible outcome for
public health interventions.

As a public health professional, I highly recommend considering the healthcare field for your
public health career journey, especially as an early-careerist. It’s not for everyone, but these public health jobs in healthcare opens many opportunities and broadens your view of public health differently than any other field of public health. I entered my hospital role with no medical training, just three years of public health experience. Yet, it became my most impactful career move. In healthcare, I have the
opportunity to see public health initiatives directly improve patient outcomes. It also highlighted
the complexities of treating the sick or injured, no matter the health behaviors they have
practiced. Moreover, this environment has significantly accelerated my professional growth
through problem-solving and expanding my knowledge in ways community-based or
governmental-based roles might not. I am proud to say that my journey through my public health career
has been complimented by my healthcare experience.

Contributor: Riley Fisher holds a Bachelor's degree in Public Health from The University of Alabama and is currently pursuing a Master's in Public Health at Texas A&M University. With a background in health planning, programming, and development within communities, Riley Fisher is passionate about improving health outcomes through evidence-based strategies. Currently, she works as an Injury Prevention Coordinator for a Commonspirit hospital in Texas, where she leads community-focused injury prevention and heart-healthy initiatives. Connect with Riley on LinkedIn.