New Education in Odense Aims to Address Healthcare Challenges

The healthcare system is currently under serious strain. The new graduates in public health science from the University of Southern Denmark in Odense aim to alleviate these challenges upon completing their studies.

"The future healthcare system is facing significant challenges, both concerning chronic diseases, public health issues, epidemics, and inequality in healthcare, but also in relation to limited resources and staff shortages. Consequently, there's a growing demand for graduates with expertise in disease prevention and healthcare systems, poised to effectively drive change," says the dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Ole Skøtt.

As many solutions in the future are expected to incorporate elements of digitalization, artificial intelligence, and technology, the program also has an increased focus on digital aspects.

Graduates Can Ease Frontline Workload

The master's program in public health science will focus on implementation and evaluation and is targeted at the challenges present in the healthcare system, addressing issues that cut across various groups of workers.

"The aim of our program is to equip graduates with the ability to tackle complex problems, transform knowledge into actionable solutions, and steer multifaceted processes. We focus on practical application, aiming to enable other healthcare professionals to devote more of their time to essential duties," says Lau Caspar Thygesen, Program Director and Professor at the National Institute of Public Health.

The program is located at SDU in Odense, close to external partners as companies, municipalities, regions, and hospitals that have a strong focus on implementing new solutions.

The first students are due to start in September 2024 in Odense, where the program is conducted in Danish. There is already an established English-language master's program in public health science in Esbjerg.