Transdisciplinary approaches to building the capacity of the public health workforce.

The thesis of this article is that public health professionals working across disciplines can have a greater impact on the health of the public than they can working independently. A conceptual model, the HERP (Health Care Services, Education, Research, Policy) Transdisciplinary Model, is proposed to support the thesis. The model differentiates transdisciplinary approaches from multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and other similar efforts. Methods for strengthening the public health workforce through application of the transdisciplinary approach to research, professional education, and practice are discussed. The key roles played by epidemiological research, the cardiovascular disease (CVD) care team, and health education/health promotion in CVD prevention in developing countries are highlighted. CVD prevention in sub-Saharan Africa is used as an example in discussing the model and the transdisciplinary approach.