Competencies needed for public health workforce in the programs of Iran’s health transformation plan: A descriptive study based on programs, operations, and competencies chain

Background and purpose: The public health workforce faces a wide range of challenges related to people’s health. Thus, they need a combination of different professional skills and competencies to perform essential public health operations and provide services to people. The present study was conducted to determine the competencies needed for the public health workforce to implement health transformation plan programs at Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences in the capital of Khuzestan province in Iran. Methods: This research was a descriptive cross-sectional study that was conducted in 2020 among 51 managers and experts of the health deputy and faculty members of the public health school. STROBE guideline was used for the present study. The research tools were two researcher-made questionnaires based on the chain of Programs, Operations, and Competencies (POC). Additionally, the validity and reliability of the questionnaires were checked. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was equal to 0.87 for the first questionnaire (programs-operations) and 0.85 for the second questionnaire (operations-competencies). Results: The operations of surveillance of population health and well-being, monitoring and responding to health hazards and emergencies, and disease prevention, including early detection of illness, obtained the highest mean total score (3.9 (95% CI: 3.6 to 4.2)). Respect for and adherence to ethical principles and confidentiality in any professional activity obtained the highest mean total score (4.0 (95% CI: 3.7 to 4.3)) among the needed competencies. Conclusion: To properly implement public health programs, managers must plan and take necessary measures to improve such operations as surveillance of population health and well-being, monitoring and responding to health hazards and emergencies, disease prevention (including early detection of illness), and promotion of the workforce competencies in the field of respect for and adherence to ethical principles and confidentiality in any professional activity.