Conceptualising geographies of health knowledge: the emergence of new education spaces for public health.
In recent years both new knowledges and new experts have been introduced into public health as part of the development of multidisciplinary practice. This paper presents an analysis of these recent changes, which is informed by theoretical ideas around governmentality and geographies of knowledge. Although critical geographies of public health are starting to emerge the education of professionals, specifically the production and consumption of knowledges within education spaces, remains relatively unexplored. This research extends existing work by critically examining the academic instruction of professionals through the Masters in Public Health programmes. Specifically the paper argues that new spaces of education are emerging to meet the requirements of multidisciplinary practice, however there is no blueprint. Instead a geographically based diversity of practice can be observed which is characterised by enclosures of expertise wherein competing forms of public health knowledge and expert are held as ideal.
Williamson
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School of Science and Health Studies, South East Essex College, Carnarvon Road, Southend on Sea, Essex SS2 6LS, UK. Suzanne.williamson@virgin.net
D004500:Education, Graduate; D004739:England; D005843:Geography; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D019359:Knowledge; D009313:National Health Programs; D011361:Professional Competence; D011634:Public Health / Q000193:education*; D012581:Schools, Public Health