COURSEWORK PROGRAM: ELECTIVE UNIT DESCRIPTIONS GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN HEALTH RESEARCH

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1 May 2013 COURSEWORK PROGRAM: ELECTIVE UNIT DESCRIPTIONS GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN HEALTH RESEARCH PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE STREAM PHM529 Sexual and Reproductive Health Coordinator: Suzanne Belton Assessment: Group presentation (10%) Report (2500 words) (40%) Public health strategy or intervention (3000 words) (50%) This unit introduces the key public health concepts and principles in the field of sexuality and reproduction. Public health is concerned with sexual and reproductive health at a population level rather than the individual, and involves maintaining health through social actions such as legislation, policy, advocacy, health promotion, health education, screening/ surveillance and modifying environments. Students will learn how to approach sexual and reproductive health from a public health, human rights and cultural perspective, analyse current data and gain tools for practical service programming for good sexual and reproductive health outcomes. PHM536 Health Systems, Planning and Management Coordinator: Sally Matthews Assessment: Discussion boards x4 (20%) Health systems essay (2500 words) (40%) Planning and Evaluation essay (2500 words) (40%) The aim of the unit is to provide firstly an overview of the Australian Health System, followed by an analysis of the key design challenges and proposed health reform strategies. It will also introduce key concepts around governance, leadership, management and evaluating performance and interventions. PHM554 Public Health Decision-Making Coordinator: Carol Beaver Assessment: Assessment Item 1: Participation in 3 on-line discussion forums (15%) Assessment Item 2: Essay ( words) (40%) Assessment Item 3: Proposal ( words) (45%) The aim of this unit is to enhance students awareness and appreciation of the role that health economics can play in the planning and delivery of health services and public health. The main focus is on using the tools of economics in health care.

2 This unit will explore the role of economics in supporting decision-making in the healthcare sector. The focus will be on public health activities at the population level rather than individual patient care. On completion of this unit students will be able to assess the relevance and value of health economics and the role health economists play, or could play, in the planning and delivery of health services. The unit will explore how economic tools can assist to clarify the key issues that arise due to scarcity of resources and how they can determine public health priorites. Students will increase their knowledge and understanding of key economic concepts such as economic cost, efficiency and equity as well as decision-support tools used by health economists. PHM559 Health Policy Coordinator: Jenne Roberts Co-Lecturer: Sally Matthews Assessment: Participation in activities at the intensive (10%) Health policy analysis (40%) Advocacy activity (50%) This unit builds upon a range of skills students have strengthened over the course of their MPH studies and provides an opportunity for students to apply these skills to public health policy development and analysis. The unit is structured around four topics: policy processes; evidence-based health policy; practical approaches to developing health policy; public health policy advocacy. PHM567 Foundations of Public Health Coordinator: Sharon Thompson Co-Lecturer: Sally Matthews Assessment: On-line discussions x2 (20%) Library assignment (1500 words) (10%) Essay ( words) (30%) Presentation ( words) (40%) Public health is a broad and continually changing discipline. This unit introduces the student to the key public health concepts, principles and resources. Students will be given an overview of the breadth of public health and to the areas within it and how they are related. This unit covers the evolution of the field, the various approaches and frameworks, the key literature and data collections and the social and environmental determinants of health. Students will examine the values, politics and challenges inherent in these different approaches and their application and begin to reflect upon where they might position themselves within the discipline. Students will also consider the present and future challenges facing communities and public health practitioners. During the 2 day on-campus intensive, students will be introduced to the printed and electronic public health information resources available, and will have practical training in using the relevant public health literature databases. This unit will provide an important foundation for the student's future study and career in public health and help students select which specialist electives will best suit their interests and abilities.

3 INDIGENOUS HEALTH STREAM PHM516 Indigenous Health and Social Change Coordinator: Sharon Chirgwin Assessment: Essay option ( words) (30%) Research essay ( words) (35%) Media journal ( words) (35%) This unit provides a sociological approach to examining the key factors that influence health in Indigenous communities in northern Australia. We will examine the social determinants of Indigenous health and well being and policy responses to public health challenges and health inequality. There is also a critical interrogation of the relationship between the health of Indigenous Australians, colonization, disempowerment and the impact on governance and leadership. Throughout this unit, students will be introduced to sociological concepts and theories to study the social and cultural dimensions of health related issues, both at the macro-social level -in the study of health systems and health policy and micro social level in the study of clinical encounters and illness related behaviours. PHM517 Public Health Anthropology Coordinator: Kate Senior Assessment: Assignment: Ethnography essay ( words) (30%) Funding proposal (40%) Field log (30%) This unit will explore the relationship between anthropology and public health. Students will learn to critique public health approaches from an anthropological point of view. They will also explore the application of anthropological approaches to all stages of public health interventions, from initial consultation to evaluation and dissemination of findings. PHM523 Health Promotion Coordinator: Robbie Lloyd Co-Lecturer: Leeann Ramsamy Assessment: Discussion Boards (10%) Assignment 1: Critical Appraisal of a health promotion campaign ( words) (40%) Assignment 2: Develop a HP program (3000 words) (50%) Intensive: 3 days Promoting health and wellbeing is a fundamental competency of the public health practitioner, but how do we know which health promotion interventions work, are cost-effective and equitable? With a focus on the social factors that underlie health behaviours, this unit equips students with the skills to appraise the evidence base in order to plan and implement effective health promotion programs. This unit is taught on-line supplemented with a 3 day on-campus intensive block during the semester.

4 PHM524 Clinical Trials Coordinator: Therese Kearns Assessment: Good clinical practice exercise and essay (35%) Critical appraisal of research (1500 words) (20%) Clinical Trial protocol (2500 words) (45%) Clinical trials are a cornerstone of evidence-based practice in health. This unit equips students with the skills to critically appraise the clinical trials literature, and provides an introduction to issues in the design and management of clinical trials. Students are introduced to key concepts and requirements for ethical conduct and Good Clinical Practice. The steps in developing a research protocol, including trial design and analysis, are examined. Practical issues in project management, clinical trials reporting and interpretation are explored. PHM525 Indigenous Health Research Coordinator: Sharon Chirgwin Co-Lecturer: Alwin Chong Assessment: Research Circles (on-line discussions) (15%) Examine the ethical, intellectual property and cross-cultural issues in published research (2000 words) (40%) Individual Learning Contract (work placement and reflective journal) (1500 words) OR Major Essay (3000 words) (45%) This unit introduces an Indigenous research perspective, in which relationships and accountability to those relationships are fundamental. Students are introduced to the history and context of Indigenous health research and ethical and cross-cultural issues. Indigenous health research is explored, including Indigenous ways of knowing, and examining how research methodologies can be implemented so that the relationships between people, places and ideas are respected. GLOBAL HEALTH STREAM PHM566 Control of Chronic Conditions Coordinator: Christine Connors Assessment: Assessment 1: Short answer questions x 2 (20%) Assessment 2: Essay ( words) (60%) Assessment 3: On-line discussions x 3 (10%) Assessment 4: Tutorial participation at intensive (10%) Intensive: 1 day This unit examines the epidemiology and control of chronic conditions.

5 The terms chronic disease, preventable chronic diseases, chronic conditions, long term disease/conditions are commonly used interchangeably. In this unit, the term chronic conditions is used as an overarching term. Chronic conditions are those which in most cases cannot be cured, only controlled. They have a gradual onset but are long term and persistent; occur across the life cycle although they become more prevalent with older age; are usually not immediately life threatening but can compromise quality of life through physical limitations and disability. Chronic conditions are influenced by underlying social determinants of health that are largely preventable, and if addressed can minimise the onset of chronic conditions. The focus of the unit is on those conditions or diseases, which constitute the metabolic syndrome, or are a direct complication of the syndrome. These include diabetes, hypertension, ischaemic heart disease and renal disease. The emphasis will be on the epidemiology and control of these conditions in Northern Australia, particularly as they affect Aboriginal people. The central role of client and cultural perspectives in informing intervention options will be stressed, and the usefulness of multi-level modelling of disease causation examined. PHM570 Epidemiology and Control of Communicable Disease Coordinators: Stephanie Davis Assessment: Assignment: review questions and STI case study (30%) Critical Appraisal of a paper (20%) Final essay ( words) (30%) Participation in discussion board (20%) This unit is relevant to students interested in extending their skills and knowledge in epidemiology, relevant to the major infectious diseases of humans. It will introduce strategies for communicable disease control and surveillance, and methods for determining and interpreting normal epidemiological and numerical measurements for communicable diseases. Students who are planning to work in remote Australia or international health are advised to include this unit in their elective choices. PHM592 Global Health Coordinator: Suzanne Belton Semester: Semester 1 Assessment: Table and comment ( words) (20%) Essay (2500 words) (30%) Policy brief (max. 4 pages) (50%) The unit aims to examine the global social, environmental and political elements of the public health of populations. The major thematic areas are: Globalisation and Health International Development & Human Rights Environmental and Social Change and Health Note: Please enrol in PHM554 Public Health Decision Making if you prefer to focus on health economics.

6 PHM593 Tropical Child Health Coordinator: Gabrielle McCallum Semester: Semester 2 Assessment: Assessment 1: Participation in 2 discussions (10%) Assessment 2: Presentation (500 words) (10%) Assessment 3: Controversies group activity (20%) Assessment 4: Essay (3000 words) (60%) This unit explores what is meant by tropical child health, the key determinants of child health in tropical regions and the public health approaches to maintaining and improving child health in tropical regions. It focuses primarily on children with some reference to youth <24 years of age. The unit will explore health issues particular to tropical countries, including both advantaged and disadvantaged populations. The unit is broadly structured around defining tropical health and the particular effects that living in the tropics has on child health and development. It will explore health determinants, particularly environmental factors, the key diseases and health priorities, and the health promotion/prevention and disease control frameworks that are required to maintain and improve the health of children in tropical countries