This course introduces students to the broad field of public health, professional roles, and the basic principles of disease prevention and health promotion among communities and populations. Students examine historical trends in the field, the 10 Essential Public Health Services, and how public health services are designed and delivered within the public health infrastructure. The course introduces students to the upstream causes of morbidity and mortality across the lifespan and how the public health system in the United States addresses these causes.
This course introduces the use of statistics in public health. Topics include descriptive statistics, probability distributions, parameter estimation, hypothesis testing, regression models, and sample size and power considerations. Students develop the skills necessary to perform, present, and interpret statistical analyses using statistical software.
This course introduces the making, understanding, and consequences of public health and healthcare policies and systems. Students will assess the design and performance of the health care system, including organization, financing, and delivery in the United States. Students will explore fundamental concerns--such as cost, access, and quality--that shape the development of health policy and health systems worldwide, and compare approaches to understand advantages and disadvantages. Students will explore the population-level impacts of health policy with systems-level view.
This course introduces students to disparities in health care and public health in the United States and around the world that occur as a result of demographic and socioeconomic factors. Students will explore the existence and impact of these disparities on individual and population health. Students will integrate knowledge to develop culturally appropriate strategies to improve health and minimize population health disparities.
The course covers qualitative research skills to discern how and why humans behave relative to their health, and emphasizes planning, design, and evaluation. Students gain an understanding of qualitative research techniques by articulating a phenomenon of interest, identifying a target population, employing proper data collection strategies, and selecting proper techniques for results verification.
This course introduces epidemiological principles and methods to study, quantify, and assess the distribution and determinants of disease among populations. Students examine the influence of biological and social factors on population health. Students evaluate epidemiologic study designs and apply measures of association as methods for determining relationships.
In this course, students will gain an understanding of how to implement public health programs and evaluate their effectiveness. Students will learn careful planning and evaluation of public health programs through assessing community needs, critique of existing programs, and proposing a new program. In order to support the interdisciplinary nature of public health programs, students will discuss and practice skills for cultural competence and building effective teams for public health program planning and evaluation.
This course introduces students to the interrelationship between human health and the natural and built environments. Students examine current environmental issues and the human activity that affects public and global health, such as climate change, disease transmission, urbanization, pollution, as well as the impact of these changes over time. Students also study the implications of environmental strategies related to community design, occupational health, and policy influencing health.
This course applies the principles of strategic leadership and interprofessional practice in public health services within different sectors. Cultural and organizational differences in leadership and management are explored to build partnerships leveraging community and organizational strengths. Students learn how to align public health programs with organizational mission, vision, and objectives for sustainability and growth. There is particular emphasis on the collaborative and interprofessional nature of public health, developing cultural competence, and the unique aspects of leadership within various types of agencies.
This course explores a variety of approaches to promoting individual and community health. Students will learn theories of health behaviors, approaches to effective health communication strategies, and considerations for constructing productive health campaigns. These strategies can occur at both the micro and macro levels. Various promotional strategies, such as social marketing, social and behavioral change communication, and health campaigns will be examined using a diverse toolbox of theoretical perspectives. Working from a foundation of both theoretical and applied health promotion strategies, students will create their own plan of action for a health communication campaign.
The course provides an overview to issues surrounding global health. Students explore multiple mechanisms that lead to health inequities around the world. Students examine policies and interventions that aim to address issues of morbidity and mortality at national or global scale. Topics covered may include: impacts of globalization on population health, socioeconomic contexts of disease, infectious disease, nutrition, relationships between culture and health, ethical and human rights concerns, and the role of nongovernmental organizations in global health.
Special topics courses will rotate. Relevant theory and current research are examined related to the topic. Students will be taught writing and presentation skills relevant to public health audiences.
This course prepares students to thoughtfully select their Applied Practice Experiences. The course is designed to provide students an opportunity to observe how theory applies to practice in professional context. The course also provides an examination of moral issues in the field of public health and covers methodological approaches to ethical decision-making. Students will discuss the application of theory and concepts in practice, identify personal strengths, describe professional development opportunities, and develop a plan for their Applied Practice Experiences.
This applied practice experience course is designed to provide students an opportunity to transition from theory to practice in public health. The student reinforces, integrates, and applies concepts, principles, and skills gained during coursework towards further developing competencies in selected areas. Students are required to complete a minimum of 150 hours of field experience in an approved public health setting under supervision from a qualified preceptor approved by the program. Students reflect on their practice experience, discuss the application of theory and concepts in practice, identify personal strengths, describe professional development opportunities, and develop a professional portfolio. Practicum/field experience hours: 150 hours.
Students will demonstrate synthesis of selected public health competencies through an integrated learning experience. Students will demonstrate communication skills through the development of a high-quality written document useful to public health stakeholders. The written document may take on a variety of forms and is tailored to the students' educational and professional goals.