Reflection Assignment #2
Reflection Assignment #2
Reflection Assignment #2
PUBH 498
Reflection Paper #2
my true strengths and weaknesses lie within my coursework. After self-assessment I realized that
I show low confidence in the ability to demonstrate information from various contexts in public
health. Both EPID 410 and STAT 205 were extremely challenging for me because looking at
Public Health through an analytical lens put me in a position as a student that I did not think I
could manage. Since I was a child I was never confident in my mathematic capabilities and this
was reflected during these two courses. I was unable to utilize the formulas and numbers
properly until I was re-taught multiple times by classmates, and because of this my confidence
was struck. I was unable to understand why my classmates had no problem solving these
equations and understanding the answers. Also, a big part of the class was taking the answers and
applying them to a real life scenario and because I was not confident in the answers I did not feel
as though I could properly apply them. Overall, this specific competency had a low score in
For me, the second area I scored low in confidence was my ability to discuss individual
and social accountability including civic responsibility and ethical responsibility as they apply to
the health of populations. I gave this specific competency a 2 because I was somewhat confident
I am confident in going home and telling my parents that smoking increases their chances for
many chronic diseases and I could give them better lifestyle options. On the other hand, I have
vey low confidence in discussing civic responsibility in terms of health. When I think of civic
responsibility I think of vaccines. As an advocate for vaccines I understand the need as a
population but I feel uncomfortable discussing this topic with individuals who have ethical
because I feel as though I need to be trained in ways to approach someone who has certain
One of the areas I scored high in confidence in is the ability to show the contributions of
a range of disciplines in improving the health of the public. I feel confident in this area because
as a psychology minor I have been exposed to a range of fields, all of which relate to the health
of the public. Throughout my time working in two psychology labs, I noticed that public health
and psychology coexist. Without the work of public health trying to continuously break the
stigma of psychological disorders, the field of psychology may not be so widely known and well
respected in our society. I know the discipline of psychology improves the health of the public
just in a different way. Having these experiences in both of these independent study courses
Another area that I showed high confidence is the ability to use suitable technologies,
scientific inquiry skills and communication to conduct ethical research on public health issues.
This area is an area I feel as though I have received the most experience and training in. In EPID
410, I mentioned earlier that I struggled with the analytical part of it but in terms of the
conceptualized part of the class on research and critical thinking I feel without a doubt I can
succeed. In addition to learning ethical research practices in EPID 410, I also went through
Institutional Review Board (IRB) training before my independent study experience. This training
made me aware of the ins and outs of research and how to properly conduct research on any
topic. Any research involves scientific inquiry skills, and communicating strategies and I have
Along with having competencies that I felt high or low confidence in I also have favorite
courses that have sculpted my view on health, and life in general. First, HPEB 300 was one of
my most intense, time-consuming classes but by the end I realized how much I enjoyed the
material. During class we had a group project that involved us creating a grant proposal and at
the end of the semester we presented our work. We were placed in groups based on our interests
and created an intervention program. Week by week I not only grew closer with my group
members but began to connect concepts and theories through group discussion. These group
discussions helped us weave these ideas through our proposals. In addition, we worked closely
with our professor, and she made us work hard. The class was structured, well managed, and I
believe had a personal impact and was useful for almost everyone in my class. I left HPEB 300
more confident in my abilities as a public health practitioner, researcher, and student. Overall,
this class set the tone for my experience in the public health program.
Second, HPEB 511 was another course that I enjoyed. In this class we got to create a
policy brief on a topic we felt passionate about and had the opportunity to submit our brief and
request legislation change. This project gave me the tools necessary to know I have the ability to
make change on my own. Along with the policy brief, we also discussed Obamacare extensively.
These extensive discussions were extremely useful and applicable. We covered aspects of health
care I was never before exposed to and that made every class enjoyable. Along with the material
being enjoyable, my professor, Dr. Mindi Spencer, was an amazing teacher, with a passion for
presenting information to us in a way that it was applicable to our lives. To say the least this class
was enjoyable but I felt as though this class was essential to my experience as a young adult.
At first, I did not think ENHS 321 was going to be a course I enjoyed but throughout the
course my idea changed. I never realized how much of an impact us as humans have on the
environment. This realization instantly hooked me into the course initially. Also, we focused a lot
on antibiotic resistance in this class, and this is a topic that I am interested in because of personal
experience with a C. Difficle infection from antibiotics. Along with both of these topics our main
assignment was to read No Impact Man. This novel exposed us to a story of a man who gave up
all comforts of modern living, and gave us insight into his experience. I enjoyed being exposed
to the environmental side of public health and by being exposed I am able to connect these ideas
about intervention and using behavior change theories such as operant conditioning to enforce
intervention. In HPEB 300, I got a taste of what it was like to create an intervention program but
I never got to experience the program first hand. I would love to gain real life experience in a
behavior skills group with children. In this behavior skills group I would like to implement
interventions with these children based around operant conditioning. Overall, I am passionate
about the topic of intervention from HPEB 300 but I would like to use intervention in children
practices. I selected confidentiality because it not only is the competency I succeeded in but I
would like to pursue a career in counseling and social work and this is based around
confidentiality. I am passionate about counseling and I know that the principle of confidentiality
and the IRB training I received will all help me become successful in gaining real life experience
direction of Dr. Kate Flory. I am working on her research project the, Project to Learn About
Youth (P.L.A.Y), as a research assistant. This experience is giving me the opportunity to work
in a team just as I have done in HPEB 511 and HPEB 300 and is allowing to me get more
experience with children. As mentioned previously, this research experience is in the field of
psychology and this experience made me confident in my ability to show contributions from a
range of disciplines and professions. Additionally, this is the experience I received the IRB
training for and the principle of confidentiality is something else that I am passionate about.
Overall, this experience with P.L.A.Y has incorporated my high confidence competencies and
passions and I am excited to continue working for the remainder of the semester.
My second idea for my Capstone Field Project would be working at Epworth Childrens
Home. I would love to create groups for each age group of children and creates different
curriculum around my idea for each group. I would use skills from HPEB 300 in creating the
program, and knowledge from HPEB 511 to inform the children in the groups. In the groups I
would put my focus around the idea of no child being left behind. I am a firm believer in social
justice and that circumstances do not have to define your future and this is the message I would
want to get across to each age group. I would include skills on how to be successful, create
activities to enforce self-confidence, and have life talks that are open to any questions that the
children may have. This experience may not be possible right now but it is something I dream of
doing. Most importantly, I would use the competencies I have gained from in classroom and out