Entrustable Professional Activities

LG7: Assessment and management - child population health

Learning Goal 7

Child population health

Assessment and management of patients through a child population health lens

This activity requires the ability to:

  • plan and implement local strategies to improve the health of all children and young people in their area, including child protection and safeguarding policies, and overseeing universal and targeted health promotion programs
  • apply knowledge of public health to work with other agencies to provide paediatric input for the commissioning and planning of services for all children and the wider community
  • contribute to the development of standards, protocols, measures and guidelines with a population perspective, such as a needs assessment including appraisals of their likely impact, ethics, cost, feasibility and acceptability
  • identify opportunities for advocacy, health promotion, and disease prevention in the communities that they serve, and respond appropriately
  • identify and make recommendations on the determinants of health of the populations, including barriers to access to care and resources, and inequalities affecting various age, gender, and cultural groups
  • identify and advocate as a leader for priority population or marginalized populations for improved health outcomes
  • address ethical issues and issues of gender, sexual orientation, age, culture, beliefs, and ethnicity in a professional manner so to influence improvement of the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families
  • critically appraise published literature including theoretical, descriptive, and interventional research, and to be able to synthesise and communicate population health information in a meaningful way to a variety of different forums

Professional practice framework domain

Medical expertise

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • identify protective factors and resilience in at risk populations, and use them to generate management and recommendations
  • formulate an awareness and consideration of conditions that are more prevalent in specific populations
  • advocate, and reduce barriers, for infants, children, and young people whose particular life circumstances increase their vulnerability to improve support and access to services that increases overall health and wellbeing both at an individual and population level
  • manage complex care needs of patients with multiple comorbidities, aiming to improve day to day functioning and quality of life
  • advocate for conditions that promote optimal child and adolescent development across the age range
  • explain available outcome measures, such as the Public Health Outcomes Framework, and how they might be used to improve service delivery
  • describe procedures followed by local health protection teams during acute public health crises
  • contribute to the development of standards, protocols, measures, and guidelines with a population perspective, including a needs assessment
  • apply the evidence base for effective interventions in injury prevention
  • respond to a child population health question to generate a health needs assessment for a specific population of children, youth, or community
  • create, implement, and evaluate strategies for the promotion of child health, wellbeing, and optimal development at a population level
  • create, implement, and evaluate child population health policies that optimise child health, wellbeing, and development at a population level
  • understand complex interplay of intergeneration trauma and social determinates of health to prevent child maltreatment

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • identify children from priority populations
  • identify barriers to health for children, young people, their families, and the community
  • describe social determinants of health and their impacts
  • apply knowledge of how a policy, health promotion, or a health strategy will impact on the health and wellbeing of the populations they serve
  • define a population health question or policy that affects the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families
  • analyse data and evidence
  • focus on individual clinical risks, rather than a population perspective
  • describe health challenges within the population

Communication

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • practise trauma-informed, and culturally safe, care for all patients
  • use alternative communication resources or information to decrease barriers to health and adherence to management plan
  • communicate with local service providers, primary care, and other community organisations in planning and management of care
  • present medical information effectively to the public or media about a medical or developmental issue
  • use written and oral communications to describe the health status and health risks of different population groups
  • use written and oral communications to convey the breadth of risks (financial, reputational, political) to the organisation, using a variety of media
  • use the principles of science communication to share information clearly, accurately, respectfully, responsibly, and empathetically
  • appropriately communicate research findings and data on markers of health and disease risk in the population
  • appropriately communicate results of epidemiological studies, including the difference between absolute and relative risk, and its relevance
  • tailor communication format and style to be appropriate for the audience

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • explore socioeconomic backgrounds with patients
  • refer to local service providers
  • present health information in a variety of forms, including written and oral
  • present health information to different audiences using a standardised format and language
  • ensure documentation is structured, formatted, and referenced appropriately

Quality and safety

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • engage consumers in quality improvement activities
  • participate in activities that contribute to the effectiveness of their health care organisations and systems, ranging from an individual clinical practice to organisations at local, regional, and national levels
  • lead or implement change in health care through quality improvement to evaluate existing health services and programs
  • plan and implement new health services and programs for a specific population
  • analyse and develop health policies or health promotion for a specific population

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • identify and define a policy issue or question that affects the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families
  • propose policy options that will affect the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families
  • influence policy-making processes related to the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families
  • ensure information privacy and security
  • critically appraise the quality of information

Teaching and learning

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • develop resources to help educate families and carers, medical students, other health professionals, and community members about strategies to improve child health
  • demonstrate effective supervision skills and teaching methods which are adapted to the context of the training
  • encourage questioning among junior colleagues and students
  • organise and participate in in-service training on new technologies
  • provide specific and constructive feedback and comments to junior colleagues
  • regularly reflect upon, and self-evaluate, professional development
  • set defined objectives for teaching encounters, and solicit feedback on mutually agreed goals

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • provide constructive feedback to junior colleagues to contribute to improvements in individuals’ skills
  • coordinate teaching for and supervise junior colleagues
  • participate in continued professional development
  • actively seek feedback on personal practice

Research

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • contribute to child health research, where applicable
  • critically appraise retrieved evidence in order to address a clinical question
  • integrate critical appraisal conclusions into clinical care
  • disseminate the findings of a study appropriate to the audience
  • critically appraise levels of evidence, interventions, diagnostic tests, prognosis, and integrative literature
  • systematically search published and ‘grey’ literature

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • describe the principles of critical appraisal
  • apply the principles of evidence-based practice in both clinical and research settings
  • describe the principles of research and ethics
  • demonstrate efficient searching of literature databases to retrieve evidence
  • identify and critique information from credible sources to aid in decision making
  • refer to evidence-based guidelines and protocols
  • demonstrate an understanding of the limitations of the evidence and the challenges of applying research in daily practice

Cultural safety

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • demonstrate commitment to improving health of Māori and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
  • collaborate with families and communities to optimise child health outcomes
  • actively support management of patients within cultural and family context
  • advocate for culturally safe care
  • consider the values, beliefs, practices, models of health, biological factors, and unique health needs of specific population groups
  • show respect for knowledge and expertise of colleagues and communities
  • actively support, and effectively use, interpreters and other communication assistance means during every clinical encounter with patients who cannot communicate confidently or verbally in English, and document this in the medical record
  • use qualified language interpreters or cultural interpreters to help meet patients’ communication needs

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • demonstrate cultural safety
  • practise cultural safety appropriate for the relevant community
  • proactively identify risks in the communication of public health information to different groups

Ethics and professional behaviour

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • actively support and promote diversity and equity
  • facilitate, and advocate for, the safety and rights of the child, including adherence to child protection laws and policies
  • support and empower families and carers to provide optimal care for their child
  • explain the ethical and professional issues inherent in health advocacy, including altruism, social justice, autonomy, integrity, and idealism
  • perform work that considers ethical implications, and adhere to legal requirements in managing and sharing public health information

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • adhere to child protection laws and policies
  • identify ethical principles relevant to the provision of public health information

Judgement and decision making

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • make decisions in the best interest of the patient
  • balance risks and benefits in communicating public health information
  • use the principles of decision science to formalise decision- making process

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • seek support to manage patients in challenging contexts
  • identify risks and benefits in communicating public health information

Leadership, management, and teamwork

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • work collaboratively within teams to improve child health outcomes
  • advocate for quality, safe, and effective care in the best interest of the child and health priorities
  • develop and implement strategies for child wellbeing and optimal development at a regional and local population level
  • work collaboratively with other staff
  • lead teams, maintaining engagement and a focus on outcomes
  • maintain strong communication with other health and intersectoral professionals about the appropriate release of public health information
  • chair meetings

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • advocate for appropriate care for patients
  • collaborate with and engage other team members, based on their roles and skills
  • ensure appropriate multidisciplinary engagement
  • encourage an environment of openness and respect
  • attend relevant meetings regularly
  • use available tools, under supervision, to build skills in chairing meetings
  • prepare for, and conduct, meetings in a well-organised and time-efficient manner
  • work effectively as a member of multidisciplinary teams or other professional groups

Health policy, systems, and advocacy

confident
Ready to perform without supervision

Expected behaviours of a trainee who can routinely perform this activity without needing supervision

The trainee will:

  • discuss principles of children’s rights, human rights and ‘in the best interest of the child’, and identify legislative support for these concepts
  • advocate for child friendly clinical and support services
  • interpret and apply legislation, policies, procedures, and protocols in the unique context of local populations and families, to advance their health
  • seek to address the determinants of health of the population, and mitigate barriers to access to care
  • advocate and promote child safety and rights of children
  • participate in health promotion, disease prevention and control, screening, and reporting notifiable diseases
  • demonstrate awareness of population health priorities
  • contribute to, or participate in, advocacy and policy activities to improve child health nationally and globally
  • direct families and carers to resources and health services targeted at improving child health
  • experience commissioning processes for children and young people’s services in their area, including the importance of public health data and surveys
  • explain the importance of just allocation of health care resources, balancing effectiveness, efficiency, and access with optimal patient care
  • apply evidence and management processes for cost-appropriate care
  • advise on global trends in health and emerging health risks
  • maintain good relationships with health agencies and services
  • apply the principles of efficient and equitable allocation of resources to meet individual, community, and national health needs
  • influence policy-making processes related to the health and wellbeing of children, youth, and their families

direction
Requires some supervision

Possible behaviours of a trainee who needs some supervision to perform this activity

The trainee may:

  • demonstrate awareness of health promotion and prevention of disease activities, and encourage patients to seek these
  • link patients in with community health services
  • understand the role of physician leadership and advocacy in appraising population health and systems of care to improve population health outcomes
  • understand the role and place of different organisations within the health care system