Where Public Health Educators are Working: A National Study of the Hiring Practices and Manpower Needs of Local Health Departments

This study collected data typically included in professional manpower reports for the purpose of establishing a manpower profile of health educators in local health departments (LHD) in the United States. Using a table of random numbers, a nationally representative sample of 670 LHD was mailed a 43-item questionnaire which assessed four basic areas: geographic jurisdiction, personnel, attitudes toward health education credentialing, and demographics of each agency top executive. Usable questionnaires were received from 279 LHD, a return rate of 41.6 percent. The data reveal that a tight job market for health educators exists in LHD. While a large majority (84 percent) of LHD are known to provide health education/risk reduction services, fewer than 60 percent of LHD in the sample employed a health educator. Among those LHD who did employ health educators, less than one-half had a full-time health educator on-staff. Using a weighting formula and interpolation as methods to make projections, there are betwee...