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Public
and Community Health
(HTH 240 3.0 Cr)
Health Services
Course Description
Today's public health professionals have an
unprecedented number of scientific studies,
strategies, tools and technologies at their
disposal. Public awareness of the field's
contributions is higher than ever before.
However, contemporary public health organizations
face the daunting task of addressing enduring
public health problems, crises like AIDS,
and emerging issues -- all at the same time.
Funding for public health programs is frequently
under attack and practitioners must allocate
shrinking budgets across a growing number
of complex and competing priorities. Furthermore,
public health functions are performed by a
fragmented and sometimes inefficient web of
agencies, advocacy groups, and care providers
at the federal, state, and local levels.
Using this shifting landscape as a backdrop,
this course introduces students to the fundamentals
of public health practice. It will prepare
students to perform key public health functions
in federal, state, and community organizations;
evaluate the legal, ethical, and historical
bases for public health; and critique and
construct strategies for responding to public
health problems.
Learning Objectives
After completing this course, students will
be able to:
• Create an argument for or against
a given public health program based on their
understanding of the mission, core functions,
legal requirements, and ethics of public health
practice
• Analyze the causes and social costs
of a public health problem based on contemporary
theories and beliefs about the determinants
of health
• Describe the roles and responsibilities
of public health organizations at the federal,
state, and local levels
• Develop a strategy for conducting
a public health assessment for a local community,
including appropriate tools and data sources
• Recommend an appropriate leadership
style for a given public health initiative
• Predict the outcome of a public health
intervention or service based on current theory
and practice
• Create a profile of a future public
health department based on current patterns
and trends
Breadth of Assignments
This course uses a variety of assignment types
in exploring the topics of Public and Community
Health including reading assignments, both
online and textbook based, group discussions,
case study assignments using an online simulated
community, individual writing and research
assignments, self-tests, and a course-long
project with peer review.
Required Resources
Scutchfield, F., and Keck, W. (2002). Principles
of Public Health Practice, 2nd Ed. Albany,
New York: Delmar Publishers. ISBN 0-7668-2843-3
Introduction to Public and Community Health
Health Services
Module/Topics
Module 1: The Foundations of Public
Health Practice
• Creating an argument for or against
a given public health program based on your
understanding of the mission, core functions,
and ethics of public health practice
• The rights, restrictions, and practices
of a public health department in light of
public health history and law
• The causes and social costs of a disease
or condition based on contemporary theories
and beliefs about the determinants of health
(including physical, biological, behavioral,
social, cultural, and spiritual factors)
Module 2: Public Health Organizations
• The roles and responsibilities of
public health organizations at the federal,
state, and local levels
• Creating an annotated list of links
to web sites that are useful for public health
practitioners
• Analyzing the areas of interdependency
and fragmentation in the delivery of public
health services
Module 3: Public Health Tools and
Techniques
• The United States' progress toward
national public health objectives using information
in Healthy People 2010
• Developing a strategy for conducting
a public health assessment for a local community,
including appropriate tools and data sources
• Recommending an appropriate leadership
style for a given public health initiative
Module 4: Strategies for Public Health
Interventions and Services
• Predicting the outcome of a public
health intervention or service based on current
theory and practice
Module 5: The Future of Public Health
• Creating a profile of a future public
health department based on current patterns
and trends
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