Claremont Colleges Library: Community and Global Health Curriculum, 2013-2014

This course provides an opportunity for students to explore the theoretical issues and current methodologies related to understanding and influencing health behavior change in diverse populations. The course will focus on the social and behavioral determinants of health on the individual, interpersonal, community, institutional and policy levels. The course features guest appearances by representatives from community-­‐based organizations who relate course material to current challenges in public health practice.

Students are trained in the most commonly used statistical methods in clinical and experimental research. Students learn to select the most appropriate data analytic methods; how to apply these methods to actual data; and how to read and interpret computer output from commonly used statistical packages. In addition, the students learn to read, critique and interpret statistical concepts in the health science literature.

This course provides an overview of the causes, distribution, and control of disease in populations. Students are provided with the skills and knowledge to investigate the epidemiology of a specific disease or other health-­‐related phenomenon and to critically evaluate population-­‐based research studies designed to test health-­‐related hypotheses.

This course examines the health care delivery system to understand contemporary issues affecting the health of the American and International public and the institutions that provide health services and protect health. The course includes the historical development of various health care systems, determinants of health and health care utilization, the role of health care providers, health policy and politics, health care financing, public health, and the interactions of various components of the systems. The class emphasizes how institutions within the health care delivery system affect public health including planning, organization, administration, evaluation and policy analysis.

This course provides a broad overview of the field of environmental and occupational health, developing a public health approach to understanding and preventing disease and disability. Students apply the principles of the biological impact pathway and environmental epidemiology to environmental and occupational health issues. Students analyze the exposure-­‐disease continuums and disease prevention. Emphasis is placed on learning and using concepts related to the sources and behavioral determinants of exposure, the social behavioral, Physiological and genetic basis of sensitivity, and dose-­‐response relationships.

The goal of this course is to provide students completing their field training an opportunity to enhance their skills in the area of grant writing and reviewing. The student will learn the steps in planning and writing the grant, understanding the funding environment, learning how to choose different types of grants, and understand the submission and review process.

The goal of this course is to provide students completing their field training an opportunity to integrate and apply knowledge and skills acquired in their respective course work to public health work settings. Students complete a 400-­‐hour internship within a public health agency or faculty research project. A final paper and presentation completes this requirement.

Serves as the culminating experience for the degree. With oversight from the Program Director, students develop a portfolio and final paper that demonstrates mastery of student competencies.

This course introduces the core concepts, values, and methods of public health program planning and evaluation. Students develop skills for assessing community needs for health promotion; preparing written measurable health promotion program objectives with associated methods for achieving those objectives; designing health promotion program action plans that include implementation schemes; and evaluation strategies for measuring health program process, impact, and outcome effectiveness. Students apply their knowledge of health promotion theories to effectively to plan, implement, and evaluate health promotion and communication programs.

This course introduces students to the language and theory of program evaluation to undertake their own evaluation, including how to pose evaluation research questions, data collection methodologies and appropriate methods for various evaluation objectives, and various evaluation designs.

This course provides an interdisciplinary approach to understanding key public health challenges that transcend local and national boundaries and require collaborative solutions. Threats to the health security and well being of communities in the U.S. and abroad are extensive ranging from natural and technical disasters to environmental degradation, poverty and health disparities, and emerging and non-­‐communicable disease. Topics that impact health outcomes, including globalization and climate change, over-­‐ and under nutrition, substance use, accidents and injuries, disasters and complex humanitarian emergencies, poor reproductive and maternal child health practices, and cultural influences will be addressed from a multi-­‐sectoral perspective. Innovative solutions to public health problems, including use of technology, micro credit, public-­‐private collaboration, and community and grassroots activities will be highlighted. The course will utilize interactive, participatory learning methods, including in-­‐depth cases studies, class debates, and a field study project to provide maximum opportunity to develop problem-­‐solving strategies for public health application.

This course is designed to increase knowledge and skills in curriculum writing and training in health promotion and disease prevention settings. The course includes a review of the applicable learning theories and provides an opportunity to design curriculum for demographically diverse groups. Students work in small groups to develop a curriculum and conduct a presentation/ training based on the needs of varied local health organizations.

Students learn how to manage and analyze data using the SAS system. Topics include inputting data into SAS, preparing data from analysis, data screening to understanding distributions, detect outliers etc., hypothesis testing (e.g. t-­‐tests, nonparametric procedures, chi-­‐square tests, etc.), simple and multiple linear regression, techniques for building and evaluating a regression model, analysis of variance model and logistic regression.

Students will gain an understanding of the principles and skills of conducting behavioral research, using qualitative and quantitative approaches commonly used in public health settings.

This course provides an overview of the causative factors and demographic distribution of the major chronic diseases and infectious in the world. Epidemiologic concepts, methods and research design are emphasized. Necessary tools for applying epidemiologic approaches to chronic disease prevention are provided. The course will also cover topics in microbiology, immunology, laboratory diagnosis, outbreak investigation, infectious disease diagnosis and control in populations and very basic analytic methods. It provides students with exposure to local public health department experts in various important contemporary topics such as vector control, emerging infections and bioterrorism.

*Cross listed as MATH 250PO, Statistical Methods for Clinical Trials Data A second course in Biostatistics. Emphasis on the most commonly used statistical methods in pharmaceutical and other medical research. Topics such as design of clinical trials, power and sample size determination, contingency table analysis, odds ratio and relative risk, survival analysis.

This course focuses on the knowledge, skills and practical tools needed to direct organizations to successful implementation of institutional vision and overall strategy. It is organized into six major Modules –future-­‐focused leadership, leading public health systems, formulating strategy, leading and managing change, developing public health organizations, and implementing strategy. Each module offers an applied training opportunity to gain advanced knowledge to build executive and managerial skills lead and enhance health systems performance.

This course explores ethical principles in the distribution of health resources, the conduct of global public health research and the implementation of public health initiatives and practices across different nations, cultures and religions, as well as differences in the concepts of right and wrong. Specific areas that are explored include the role of national and international Institutional Review Boards, research integrity, the ethics of health as a political entitlement, state obligation, or a commercial commodity, the right to health, the ethical challenges of institutionalizing worldwide western concepts of informed consent procedures and confidentiality while at the same time seeking to advance scientific discovery and promote universal public health justice for the poor and disadvantaged.

This course reviews the management of health programs and services in the developing world, including international technical cooperating, donor and development agencies as well as private and non-­‐profit health organizations. It offers a management perspective to address the most prevalent problems of health care delivery and systems performance around the world as they relate to the specific administration functions of planning, organizing, resourcing, directing and controlling medical and public health services.

This course is an intensive review of select topics in the practice of global health leadership and management. It reviews emerging trends, lessons learned, best practices, and critical factors connected to the successful implementation, leadership and support of expanded health responses (public, private and non-­‐profit sectors) at local, national and international levels. Topics include strategies and interventions to achieve workforce excellence, enhance organizational performance, strengthen public health infrastructures, and improve the health status and well-­‐being of people around the globe.

This course focuses on the dimension of health informatics that takes as its sphere of influence the community, public, and population health domains. Public Health Informatics focuses on the collection and utilization of data as related to a specific or general population to generate knowledge to influence or progress public health practices, policy decisions, research, and dissemination of information for the greater good. In a directed readings and discussion format, we will read policy pieces, understand national and international research studies, analyze case demonstrations, and explore other new and related developments, such as the Public Health Information Network (PHIN). In addition, the course will host several expert guest speakers (practitioners, researchers, etc.) for whom the use of data and information for public and population health issues is a concern.

This course focuses on electronic health records generally and personal health records specifically. Through presentations, discussions, and case study analyses participants will explore best practices and guidelines for the use of e-­‐Health applications (e.g. Electronic Health Records [EHRs] and Personal Health Records [PHRs]. The evidence base that exists regarding technology's role in behavior change and chronic disease management (e.g. diabetes, heart failure, depression) will also be addressed. This course will serve to educate participants on the gaps and needs of the consumer as a springboard for considering and enacting exciting new ideas for using e-­‐health systems to provide public health benefits throughout society.

This course provides an overview of the theoretical foundations and the applied use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). At the end of the course, each student has a working knowledge of GIS and how to apply these systems in various situations and organizational settings. Students demonstrate their understanding of the principles and fundamental concepts of GIS in a culminating project. The class is held in a computer lab, allowing hands-­‐on learning involving a wide and growing range of GIS software applications and spatial data resources.

The goal of the course is to introduce students to the major concepts and role of information technology (IT) in the modern organization. Today, IT provides firms and managers with strategic advantage in a competitive and dynamic market. The course takes a practical and managerial approach by bringing in basic terminology, new technologies, communication networks and the Internet, and showing how these become a critical success factor in the operation of companies in the business environment.

The course involves lecture and discussion focused on specific topics in community and global health. Course topic will vary from semester to semester.

This course involves research conducted at the master’s level on a specific topic in community and global health. Maximum number of units applied to the degree is to be determined by the School. Graded S/US.