ABSTRACT:
The Certified in Public Health (CPH) credential requires all active certificants to report a minimum of 30 recertification credits every two years, earned through a wide range of continuing education and professional development activities. Since the launch of this requirement, nearly 500,000 individual recertification credits have been reported, creating one of the largest known, practitioner-reported datasets documenting how the public health workforce maintains competence and stays current with evolving scientific and professional standards. This presentation draws on a comprehensive analysis of these reported credits to examine patterns in the types of activities, subject-matter focus, and modes of professional development utilized by CPH professionals. Unlike surveys or self-reported intentions, these data reflect verified, completed learning activities tied directly to an active professional credential, offering rare insight into real-world workforce behavior at scale. Analyses explore variation in reported credits across key subgroups, including geographic location, area of practice, career stage, and professional seniority, allowing for an assessment of how different segments of the public health workforce engage in continuing education. In addition, the study examines longitudinal shifts in professional development activities before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting changes in format and content during and following a period of unprecedented disruption. The findings provide a unique, empirical perspective on workforce learning in public health. The results have implications for credentialing bodies, educators, employers, and policymakers seeking to ensure the public health workforce has relevant and timely continuing education opportunities.