Licensing and inspection of
care facilities,
food service establishments,
and water suppliers
Infection and disease control
Food safety evaluation and monitoring
Water quality testing
Indoor air quality testing
Health promotion
Health hazard management
(e.g. boil water advisories, flood warnings)
Tobacco control
Enforcement of public health legislation
Emergency response teams
Recreational water safety
What do environmental public health professionals do?
Encompassing all aspects of our lives, from air to water to food, to employment and recreation, to our homes and families, environmental public health is a cornerstone of safe, functional, and thriving communities.
Working with provincial and regional health authorities, health counties, tribal councils, and provincial and federal governments and ministries, these environmental public health professionals (also known as public health inspectors and environmental health officers) are essential to keeping our water, food, land, air, and facilities safe.
However, not every Canadian is safe at all times, due to a lack of social equity, unforeseen events, and ongoing changes in our society and our environment. But no matter the cause, environmental public health professionals are continually learning and adapting to anticipate and address challenges to every person’s health and safety, with the goal of making Canada better for everyone.
How do I become an environmental public health professional?
Environmental public health professionals have specific professional skills obtained through specialized education, training, and national certification in Canada.
While career paths and levels of expertise vary, typically an environmental public health professional must:
1
Hold an approved academic qualification, such as a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Health.
2
Complete a minimum of 12 weeks of practicum experience.
3
Pass an exam comprising written and oral components in order to receive a Certificate in Public Health Inspection (Canada), CPHI(C), from the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors.
Environmental public health professionals must also maintain their technical skills and knowledge by participating in ongoing professional development activities, and while building a range of other qualities that play an important part in their work. These include effective communication and problem-solving skills, empathy, curiosity, and a desire to make a difference.
Meet an environmental public health professional
Casey Neathway, CPHI(C)
National President-Elect
Casey is the interior regional manager of Environmental Public Health Services for British Columbia’s First Nations Health Authority, the first province-wide, Indigenous-led health authority of its kind in Canada. Casey graduated from Thompson Rivers University with a BSc. in cellular, molecular, and microbial biology, and subsequently attended BCIT for his environmental health training, graduating in 2008. Since then, Casey has continued his education, obtaining graduate certificates in public health strategic communications and public health leadership. Throughout his career, Casey has worked in varied programs in population and public health, including environmental health, community care licensing, and First Nations community programming.
Prior to joining the BC Branch Executive Council as president-elect, Casey was (and continues to be) an associate editor of the BC Branch newsletter, and spent a number of years as a BoC examiner.
Casey currently lives in Vernon, BC where he enjoys the ideal Okanagan climate by backpacking, kayaking, camping, and snowshoeing with his family and dog.
