NSW Public Health Training Program: 35 years of strengthening public health systems and practice in an Australian setting

Objective The public health workforce is central to promoting and protecting the health of individuals, communities, and populations, and to creating environments that support healthy living and wellbeing. This paper describes the history and key outcomes of the NSW Public Health Training Program and examines the program's contribution to building public health capacity in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Type of program The program is a 3-year workplace training program for public health graduates. Methods The authors used a mixed methods design, including analysis of program data and document review. Results From 1990 to 2023, the program supported the training of 223 public health professionals, including 52 medical graduates undertaking specialist training in public health medicine. Trainees supported critical population health initiatives, provided surge capacity for a range of public health emergencies, and published more than 600 peer-reviewed publications. Most graduates (n =115, 81.0%) and just over half of early exits (n =29, 51.8%) remained with NSW Health after training. The most common graduate occupations were epidemiologist (32.4%), policy analyst (15.5%), and public health or program manager (12.0%). Lessons learnt Building public health workforce capacity takes time and a sustained commitment. Employment outcomes are important indicators of success for workplace training programs. The program has made a substantial contribution to building public health capacity in NSW.