Postgraduate Course: Introduction to Global Public Health (GLHE11064)
Course Outline
| School | Deanery of Molecular, Genetic and Population Health Sciences |
College | College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
| Course type | Online Distance Learning |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | This introductory global health course will equip students with an understanding of how the health of the world's population has changed over time, how and why it might change in future and what might be done to influence these trajectories. A recurring theme throughout the course is that essentially the same global drivers are responsible for the health risks faced by populations in both high and middle/low income countries. The stark differences in health outcomes in high income compared with middle/low income countries is not primarily a reflection of different risks but of differences in the capacity to prevent or respond to these risks. The field of global health is a constantly and rapidly changing one, so the focus of this course is not simply to teach students about current global health priorities but rather to equip them with the skills and knowledge to assess and critically appraise global health evidence so that they can become effective decision-makers and problem-solvers. |
| Course description |
This course is organised into five weekly sessions. Sessions 1 to 4 cover the topics listed below:
1. What is global health? This session examines the concept of global health and how this has evolved over the last 70 years or so. We consider evolving global health governance arrangements.
2. Measuring global health: We look at how different types of global health issue can be measured and at the inherent challenges involved. We introduce and briefly critique the global burden of disease approach and look at what this tells us about evolving global health issues. We also consider the concept of globalisation and global drivers of health and disease.
3. Health inequity: We introduce the concept of health inequity and the seminal work of Sir Michael Marmot. We look at tools for assessing the equity impact of public health interventions and different health system arrangements.
4. Gender and health: We focus on gender as one form of inequity and introduce a tool for analysing the impact of gender on disease and disease outcomes.
The final week of the course is devoted to student presentations, which constitutes 40% of the summative assessment for this course. Students are divided into three groups and present the results of their enquiries into:
1. Communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional diseases
2. Noncommunicable diseases
3. Injuries and violence
These enquiries cover an analysis of the magnitude/global burden of the issue, the underlying causes/drivers, the identification of risk factors and at-risk populations/groups and a critical analysis of global initiatives and evidence-based interventions to address the issue. Students receive peer and tutor feedback.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | Students are responsible for meeting the cost of their own computer and Internet access. |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Have a critical awareness of the socio-economic, biological and environmental causes and consequences of disease in different global contexts and of key ideas that have shaped approaches to tackling these problems over recent decades
- Critically apply methodologies such as the global burden of disease approach and health equity tools to measure and analyse global health problems
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
This course directly addresses the following graduate attributes:
Research and enquiry
Communications
Personal effectiveness |
| Keywords | Global health,public health |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Ruth McQuillan
Tel: (0131 6)50 9238
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Rosemary Porteous
Tel: (0131 6)50 9835
Email: |
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