Public Health (PH)

This course introduces concepts of health equity and social justice. The course will examine relevant historical issues, theories, social determinants of health, and explore research pertaining to global health inequities. Students will gain a better understanding of interventions used to promote health equity and social justice among diverse populations.

This course explores the fundamental concepts, principles, and methods of epidemiologic research at an intermediate level. Students will develop the tools needed to assess the quality of the evidence linking biological, social, and behavioral factors with health outcomes, in order to make informed, evidence-based decisions and communicate decisions effectively with a variety of health professionals as well as the public. Students will develop skills and knowledge in using epidemiologic observational and experimental research methods. Students will deepen their understanding of the vital role played by epidemiology in varied health-related fields, including public and community health, health care delivery, health policy, as well as in personal health decisions.

This course will invite students to think critically about the social and behavioral determinants of health. The course focuses on the pathways that connect the health behavior of individuals to the health policies and practices that societies develop and implement to address public health needs. The course examines these pathways while considering the interconnected histories of public health and equity, inclusion, social justice and diversity. In this course we will examine key principles of the sociology and psychology of health, and health promotion, focusing on essential theories of health behavior, cross-cultural perspectives and the roles that individuals, social networks, communities, and systems play in health-related behavior, illness experience, health promotion and disease prevention. We will appraise health care and public health systems and their role in population health. We will critique macrosocial factors such as place, economics and political systems that influence population health. Finally, we will analyze the effects of public policy on health and consider how public health communications are created and disseminated.

Vector-borne and zoonotic diseases (VBZD) are infectious diseases whose transmission involves animal hosts or vectors. Vector-borne diseases, such as malaria, are those in which an organism, typically insects, ticks, or mites, carry a pathogen from one host to another, generally with increased harmfulness (virulence) of the pathogen in the vector. Zoonoses, such as Avian Flu, are diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans by either contact with the animals or through vectors that carry zoonotic pathogens to from animals to humans. Many VBZD are climate sensitive and ecological shifts associated with climate change are expected to impact the distribution and incidences of these diseases.

This course introduces students to health policy and reform, with a particular focus on the USA health system. Students will examine the structure of health systems, analyzing main actors, mechanisms and dynamics that influence health policy-making processes, including health sector reform. The course also introduces students to principles of health policy analysis, while identifying strategies for effective health policy implementation and advocacy.

This course serves as an introduction to the collection, analysis, and presentation of data related to public health. Methods of exploring, organizing, and presenting data will be introduced, along with fundamentals of probability, including probability distributions and conditional probability. Students will learn the foundations of statistical inference, including concepts of population, sample parameter, and estimate; and approaches to inference using the likelihood function, confidence intervals, and hypothesis tests. The course introduces and employs the statistical computing package, Stata, to manipulate data.

This course provides a foundation of environmental health and justice by bridging scientific skills with analysis of health inequities. We will review core principles of environmental health including exposures, assessment and intervention/remediation and discuss in relation to racism, distributive justice, and representation in environmental struggles through a blend of interdisciplinary and interprofessional perspectives. Students will learn about the disproportionate burdens of environmental contamination affecting communities of color across the US and globally and will assess approaches to remediation. The first unit of the course will focus on environmental injustice and review seminal readings, laws and regulations. The second unit will discuss local and global air, water, food and land based environmental exposures. The third unit will train students to synthesize environmental health data for identifying health inequities and intervention targets.

This course assists students in gaining the knowledge and skills necessary to assume leadership roles in interprofessional settings within public health. It focuses on developing core competencies that leaders need to ensure high-quality outcomes, including self-awareness, communication, interdisciplinary and interprofessional collaboration, cultural competency, historical perspective, evidence-based practice, and decision-making skills. Students analyze multiple factors that have an impact on population health and will learn strategies to maintain accountability to stakeholders.

This course provides foundational knowledge and practical guidance in public health research, including identification and selection of appropriate quantitative and qualitative study designs and data collection tools. Mixed-method and participatory approaches to research will also be covered, as well as ethical issues in conducting research. By the end of this course, students will be able to evaluate and design methods for collecting population health data needed to answer specific questions related to public health and health inequities.

This course will familiarize students with theories, concepts, empirical evidence, and epidemiological methods used to study the relationship between social factors and health disparities. The course emphasizes the role of social conditions in shaping an individual's exposure to disease risk and access to health promoting resources. The role of race, ethnicity, social capital, and socioeconomic status will be discussed in relation distributions of population health. Approaches to measurement and study design will be reviewed. Students will critically evaluate theoretical, methodological and empirical issues, and identify strengths and limitations of the discipline.

One of the three overarching goals of Healthy People 2020 is to achieve health equity, eliminate disparities and improve the health of all groups. In this course, students will: (1) understand root causes of health inequities; (2) understand pathways from root causes to adverse health effects in some populations; (3) understand the populations most affected by health inequities and what makes them vulnerable; (4) assess specific public health strategies to mitigate the effects of the root causes and risk factors, and (5) understand principles of intervention design and optimization. The course will prepare students to identify and assess innovative intervention for addressing inequities.

This course examines how global and international policy-making processes have an effect on health equity at the national level. Students will explore cross-cutting factors that impact health systems around the world and differences in policy approaches. Students will apply health policies theories and frameworks to analyze global health issues and gain an understanding of available tools to advocate for policies at different levels of the global health system.

This course offers a multidisciplinary perspective on the contemporary understanding of pandemics. Social and environmental drivers of pandemics and pandemic response are emphasized. Using HIV/AIDS and Covid-19 as key cases, etiology, immunology, epidemiology and public health responses are discussed. The course seeks to understand the complexity and multi-dimensionality of the relationship between disease, society and public policy.

As a requirement established by the Council on Education for Public Health, students demonstrate the attainment of competencies through Applied Practice Experiences. This will consist of 120-hour work experience in the form of a practicum or internship. The Applied Practice Experience may also consist of activities linked to service learning or co-curricular activities (e.g., service and volunteer opportunities, such as those organized by a student association). Activities in the Applied Practice Experience should be mutually beneficial to both the site and the student. Each student will demonstrate attainment of at least five MPH competencies, of which at least three must be foundational. Students will work under the supervision a Practicum Advisor and Site Supervisor.

According to the Council on Education in Public Health (CEPH), “MPH students complete an integrative learning experience that demonstrates synthesis of foundational and concentration competencies.” Students, in consultation with faculty, will select competencies appropriate to the student’s educational and professional goals and develop a high-quality Capstone Paper. Capstone Paper topics are discussed with the Course Instructor and Faculty Mentors, approved by the Course Instructor, and may be chosen based on work carried out the applied practice experience site.