Public Health: What It Is and How It
Works, 2nd Edition
SAMPLE SYLLABUS EXAMPLE
Instructors
Instructor
- Name, title, address, phone, e-mail address, links to personal web
site and CV
Teaching Assistants
Course
Description
This course provides an introduction to
public health concepts and practice by examining the philosophy, purpose,
history, organization, functions, tools, activities and results of public
health practice at the national, state, and community levels. The course also
addresses important health issues and problems facing the public health system.
Case studies and a variety of practice-related exercises serve as a basis
for learner participation in real world public health problem-solving simulations.
The various components of the course aim to stimulate interactions among learners
and instructors around important problems and issues facing public health.
Since computers and the Internet's World Wide Web are now basic tools for
public health practitioners, this course also seeks to foster and enhance
skills related to the use of technology for accessing and using information
and communicating with colleagues.
The entire course can be presented online
or these materials can be used to enhance traditional classroom formats. Course
participants must individually arrange for Internet access and ensure that
they have the appropriate computer hardware and software capabilities. The
instructors and TAs are available throughout the course to provide support,
feedback and guidance to learners. The method of instruction emphasizes understanding
of the basic concepts through active learner participation in a variety of
computer-mediated activities and interactions. Material presented in the various
modules of the course is linked to the reading assignments.
Course Objectives
Overall goals for the course are for learners
to:
- Achieve familiarity with the various components of the public health
system
- Understand interrelationships among the system's components
- Acquire the ability to apply this knowledge and understanding to
important health issues and problems
- Acquire an awareness of the importance of independent reading and
study
- Develop basic computer skills for accessing information and communicating
with peers
- Appreciate the unique characteristics of public health practice as
a social enterprise
Through this course the learner will acquire
basic knowledge, attitudes and skills. The principal knowledge objectives
of this course are to be able to recall, understand, apply, analyze, synthesize
and evaluate relevant knowledge of the following:
- Definitions of public health and public health practice
- Important components of the public health system, including participants,
inputs, processes, outputs, and outcomes
- The organization, provision and financing of public health services
and programs
- Assessment of the health status of populations, including the determinants
of health and illness, factors contributing to health promotion and disease
prevention, and factors influencing the use of health services
- Historical development, statutory basis, functions and structure
of state, local and federal public health agencies
- Important and emerging public health problems and issues and approaches
and constraints to addressing those problems and issues
- Sources of information relevant to public health issues and public
health practice available on the Internet's World Wide Web
Principal attitudinal objectives include:
- Appreciation for the uniqueness of public health as a social enterprise
- Appreciation for an interdisciplinary and systems approach to complex
public health problems
- Belief that public health professionals acting individually and collectively
can improve public health practice
- Recognition of the need for ongoing and continuing education and
skill enhancement to keep abreast of developments in the field of public
health
- Appreciation of the importance of an understanding of history
- Awareness of the factors and obstacles impeding further progress
in improving the public health
- Appreciation of the importance of disease prevention and health promotion
in our society
Principal skill objectives include the ability
to:
- Understand, although not necessarily be able to analyze, interrelationships
among the principal components of the public health system
- Apply an epidemiological approach to identifying and addressing important
public health problems
- Conceptualize public policy implications of various approaches to
public health issues and problems
- Apply assessment, policy development and assurance concepts to important
public health issues and problems
- Identify available resources and major ethical, legal and enforcement
constraints of important public health issues and problems
- Locate, access and utilize data and information relevant to public
health practice from diverse sites on the Internet's World Wide Web
- Effectively communicate information related to an important public
health problem or issue to a diverse group of health professionals
Upon completion of this course, learners
should have accomplished these objectives in terms of the indicated knowledge,
attitudes and skills. Since there are neither clear nor easy answers to many
of the public health problems and issues examined in the course, an important
over-arching objective is to encourage learners to think independently and
critically about the issues, rather than to assume the role of passive recipients
of factual information.
Key Information
for the Course
This section includes a variety of information
and tips to help learners understand and use the technical features of the
course. (The items provided here are from a completely online course developed
by Dr. Turnock; they are presented to serve as an example of the type of information
that can be useful to students in online courses.)
Start-up Tips
- The text used in this course is Public Health: What It Is and
How It Works, 2nd Edition by Bernard Turnock. It is available from
the campus bookstore and through http://www.aspenpublishers.com.
- Feel free to begin working on the first module even before the course
officially begins in order to become comfortable with the technical aspects
of the course. This is also a good way to see how the course content is
structured.
- You will have access to many different documents, case studies, web
sites, and other resources. These are provided in the appropriate sections
of the various modules of the course. A comprehensive catalog of all the
documents, case studies, exercises, web sites, and other resources for all
modules are available through the Additional Resources page.