Capstone Paper Outline
Project Summary below
The student will utilize birth record data to determine the prevalence of infants born to resident Hepatitis B pregnant people. At minimum they will stratify by mother’s resident geography, ethnicity, age, birth state/country, and gestational age. Other topics of interest could be birth weight, number of prenatal visits, education, WIC participation, insurance, method of delivery, whether the infant was alive at discharge, and other comorbidities.
Topic: Factors contributing to prevalence of infants born with Hepatitis B among pregnant women in Hawaii
As for your paper’s format/outline, I would expect you to have something similar like this:
Introduction should have background information/rationale of your topic (discuss scientific background/rationale of your topic, include all relevant information about your topic, etc.)
Methods such as study design (cross-sectional), setting (describe how data was collected – where, when, who, etc), participants (eligibility criteria, and the sources and methods of participant selection), variables (what information are you looking for such as demographic information, etc.), study size (explain how the study size was arrived at – why did you include or exclude participants/study sample), statistical methods (discuss how you ran your analysis, for example, using excel to find proportions/percentages for yes or no questions)
Results should include the number of individuals included in your study and give reason why participants were included and excluded, give characteristics of the study population (for example, demographic information), outcome data (report number of outcome events or summary measures), main results, and other other analyses if done
Discussion should have key results (summarize the key results on the study), interpretation
Public health relevance/implications
MPH competencies
Capstone Paper
The Capstone Paper is a high-quality, original written product that is appropriate for the student’s professional and/or educational objectives. The length will depend on the format and goals of the paper. For example, a paper written with the goal of publication would follow an appropriate journal’s format, but with a preface or appendix to fulfill additional HPU requirements. A general goal for those without format restrictions should be about 15,000 words (30 pages single spaced, 12-point font), not including references, titles and sub-titles, etc.
The Capstone Paper will be evaluated using the accompanying rubric. Content includes originality of work; appropriateness and execution of any methods, including background research and analyses; and meaningfulness to the public health community. The synthesis of the MPH Foundational and Generalist Concentration competencies is explicitly evaluated. Additional writing skills such as organization and structure; following academic conventions, including citing references; and the use of proper syntax, style, and grammar are also evaluated.
Regardless of the format, all Capstone Papers will include a section which demonstrates the synthesis of relevant MPH Foundational and Generalist Concentration competencies. The student must refer to at least four, but not more than eight competencies. At least one of the competencies must be a Foundational competency and at least one must be a Generalist Concentration competency
MPH Foundational and Generalist Concentration Competencies
MPH Foundational Competencies
Evidence-based approaches to public health:
Apply epidemiological methods to the breadth of settings and situations in public health practice.
Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context.
Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming and software, as appropriate.
Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice.
Public health & health care systems:
Compare the organization, structure and function of health care, public health and regulatory systems across national and international settings.
Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequities and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community and societal levels.
Planning & management to promote health:
Assess population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities’ health.
Apply awareness of cultural values and practices to the design or implementation of public health policies or programs.
Design a population-based policy, program, project or intervention.
Explain basic principles and tools of budget and resource management.
Select methods to evaluate public health programs.
Policy in public health:
Discuss multiple dimensions of the policy-making process, including the roles of ethics and evidence.
Propose strategies to identify stakeholders and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes.
Advocate for political, social or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations.
Evaluate policies for their impact on public health and health equity.
Leadership:
Apply principles of leadership, governance and management, which include creating a vision, empowering others, fostering collaboration and guiding decision making.
Apply negotiation and mediation skills to address organizational or community challenges.
Communication:
Select communication strategies for different audiences and sectors.
Communicate audience-appropriate public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation.
Describe the importance of cultural competence in communicating public health content.
Interprofessional practice:
Perform effectively on interprofessional teams.
Systems thinking:
Apply systems thinking tools to a public health issue.
MPH Generalist Concentration Competencies
Assess the public health implications of the environmental conditions, political landscape, population characteristics and movement, and vulnerabilities and capacities unique to Hawai‘i and the Pacific region.
Design an original research study, including instrument development, sample selection, and analysis plan.
Apply Geographic Information Systems techniques to health data, including joining data, manipulating layers, and creating maps.
Assess the unique physical, mental, and occupational health aspects associated with military service.
Evaluate the significance of diseases that thrive in the tropics and subtropics with a focus on the Pacific region.
