If you have a desire to help others and are self-motivated, you might be interested to learn how to become a public health outreach specialist. This is not a career for everyone as it is not a highly-paid profession. However, the rewards of the position are in the satisfaction of making a difference to the population you serve.
What Is a Public Health Outreach Specialist?
The job description for a public health outreach specialist varies depending on where you work. Some of these professionals are found in the public school system teaching hygiene and sexual health. Others act as liaisons between public health agencies and communities in setting up workshops and facilitating immunization programs. On an individual level, public health outreach specialists may perform short-term case management, such as helping an elderly person transition from hospital to home health care or working with pregnant, at-risk women. Some outreach specialists work with non-English-speaking clients, translating or even transcribing information from doctors or other health professionals. The workers maintain close contact with agencies and programs so that they are abreast of current eligibility guidelines in order to give information and referral services to individuals. Public health outreach specialists are even involved in casework with victims of domestic violence, working to obtain services for them and to educate them so that the cycle does not recur.
Education
Although many people are employed as companions or aides performing some of these duties, a public health outreach specialist as a highly-trained professional. Although you can get some positions with a bachelor’s degree, many specialists have their Master’s degree. The education needed also depends upon the kind of outreach you are performing. For example, a nurse outreach specialist might perform assessments of daily living activities to determine the level of care needed for elderly clients. This job would require a license as a Registered Nurse as well as knowledge of resources and of how agencies interface, which would require a social science concentration. Specialists working as public health liaisons would need backgrounds in communications. Degrees helpful in this profession are sociology and public health with concentrations in mass communications, community health, public health, health education and public relations.
Public Health Outreach Specialist Salary
People who work as public health outreach specialists do not work for the salary only, but for the satisfaction of helping others. This career is relatively low-paid. Salaries range from $30,000 to $60,000 with experience and a bachelor’s degree, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Even though salaries for these professionals are low, individuals who hold master’s degrees could work as program directors for hospitals or public health agencies and earn much more.
Related Resource: Public Health Management Specialist
Since the profession can take so many tracks, it is important to decide where you want to be employed and with what population before tailoring your degree program. Foreign languages and cultural studies are definitely assets in any arena. Those who are looking toward this career need to assess whether they work with individuals or with populations and in what capacity before selecting their majors and concentrations to become a public health outreach specialist.