Proceedings of the National Conference for Institutions Preparing Health Educators (Birmingham, Alabama, February 5-7, 1981).

The purposes of this conference were to clarify the role of health educators, to identify institutional responsibilities in credentialing health educators, to examine the credentialing process as it applies to the preparation of health educators, and to establish criteria for the entry-level health educator. Participants, health educators from various practice settings, were also asked to consider the responsibilities of the health educator in relation to healthy people. Brief summaries are presented of the discussion groups' comments on: (1) the role of the generic, entry-level health educator; (2) certification of the health educator; (3) program accreditation; (4) institutional and personal implications of role delineation and credentialing; and (6) health educators and disease prevention/health promotion objectives for the United States. Speeches presented at the conference addressed: (1) an historical perspective on professional preparation; (2) national objectives in disease prevention/health promotion (3) regulatory programs governing the certification of health professionals; (4) the progress of the Role Delineation Project, initiated to promote a unified approach by health professionals to their duties and responsibilities; (5) certification of community health educators; (6) certification of health educators in medical care; (7) implications of certification and accreditation standards for school health education and for institutions and programs; and (8) recommendations for future action, options, and opportunities. Recommendations generated by the three-day conference are included along with background papers and events leading to this conference. (JD)