Public Health Program Sheet The Bachel of Science in Public Health prepares students to address the health of communities and populations through instruction, service, and research. While focused on the scientific and quantitative components of the field, our program builds on the college s excellence in liberal arts education by emphasizing the essential role that the humanities and social sciences play in promoting public health. Students who graduate with this degree will be able to use these methods to address public health issues with a scientifically sound methodology while remaining holistic, community-iented, and globally conscious. Facts from the Association of Schools f Public Health [ASPH] 1. The ASPH estimates that 250,000 me public health wkers will be needed by 2020. 2. The public health wkfce is diminishing over time (there were 50,000 fewer public health wkers in 2000 than in 1980), fcing public health wkers to do me f me people with fewer resources. 3. This challenge is compounded by the fact that 23% of the current wkfce almost 110,000 wkers are eligible to retire by 2012. 4. There are documented and fecasted shtages of public health physicians, public health nurses, epidemiologists, health care educats, and administrats. Without enough public health wkers protecting us where we live, wk, and play, we all are vulnerable to serious health risks. 5. To replenish the wkfce and avert the crisis, schools will have to train three times the current number of graduates over the next 11 years. What is Public Health? Public health is the science and art of protecting and improving the health of populations. Some of the many tools that public health practitioners use to do this are health education and promotion, research and investigation, injury prevention and control, health policy and administration, environmental protection, and health moniting and surveillance. It focuses on the health and well-being of populations rather than individuals, while also emphasizing prevention, rather than treatment, by striving to reduce eliminate diseases and increase health through education, policies, services, and research. Public health is a truly interdisciplinary field. Its practitioners are well-versed in fields such as biology, epidemiology, biostatistics, infmation systems, anthropology, sociology, education, business, economics, communications, genetics, physiology, ethics, and many others. Some of the imptant functions that public health practitioners perfm are investigating disease outbreaks, moniting the air and water f pollutants, educating the public about health, administering large healthcare ganizations, creating and analyzing disease surveillance systems, communicating health messages to the community, researching causes of diseases in populations, assuring safe water and food, setting health local and national health policy, and developing treatments and cures f disease. Public health practitioners wk in local state health departments; federal agencies such as the CDC, FDA, EPA, NIH; non-profit aid ganizations such as the American Red Cross Docts without Bders; hospital and healthcare systems such as Kaiser Permanente
Intermountain Healthcare; international ganizations such as UNICEF, PAHO, WHO; pharmaceutical biotech companies such as Eli Lilly Amgen; large manufacturing companies such as Fd Mot Company Rio Tinto; think tanks and consulting firms such as the Rand Cpation; academic research teaching institutions; and any other ganization where population health is a concern. Should I pursue a degree in Public Health? Do you want to wk in healthcare, but don t want to practice clinical medicine as a nurse, doct, technician? Do you see healthcare from a holistic viewpoint? Do you want to wk in a field that is constantly changing and challenges you on a daily basis? Public health offers a huge variety of job opptunities to suit many interests and skills. Whether you enjoy crunching numbers, conducting research, wking with people, there is a place f you. Because of the varied nature of public health, those who love diversity in their professions will be well placed in public health. And of course, public health is perfect f those who gain satisfaction knowing that they are wking to improve the lives of others. Mission The Public Health program prepares those interested in a career in public health health sciences with the tools necessary to promote health and prevent illness. Students are trained in the ce competencies of public health, which include the following skills: policy development and program planning, communication, cultural competency, community dimensions of practice, financial planning and management, leadership, assessment, and systematic and analytical thinking. We accomplish this while embracing Westminster s ce values: impassioned teaching and active learning, respect f diverse people and perspectives, collabation and teamwk, personal and social responsibility, college-wide excellence, and high ethical standards. We prepare public health wkers to be truly ready to meet the health challenges and diverse needs of the twenty-first century in local, national, and global venues. Program Goals The graduate of the Public Health program will be prepared to do the following: 1. Apply critical thinking skills to recognize the public health problems of vulnerable populations on a social and community scale. 2. Describe multidisciplinary and ecological public health issues and concerns. 3. Describe the biological basis of health and disease from a population viewpoint. 4. Understand the role of health promotion and health prevention in public health. 5. Recognize the role of quantitative methods in addressing public health issues. 6. Use health policy and health administration to positively affect public health. 7. Understand the role of the environment on health. 8. Apply cultural competencies to public health problems. 9. Use knowledge in global health issues and global consciousness to address health issues wldwide.
Faculty Han Kim, Assistant Profess; BSE 1991, University of Michigan; MSPH 1998, University of Utah; PhD 2002, University of Washington. Gege White, Jr. Profess; BS 1978, MSPH 1981, PhD 1987, University of Utah. John Contreras, Assistant Profess; BS 1983, Arizona State University; MSPH 2000, PhD 2008, University of Utah. Program Requirements The undergraduate degree in Public Health can be completed in four years. A total of 57 credits are required f completion of this academic maj. Requirements include coursewk in the humanities, life sciences, behavial and physical sciences, feign languages, and public health. Many of the courses are structured such that they are sequential. Please refer to the course descriptions f prerequisites. The academic min requires 22 credits to complete. Requirements include 14 credits of Public Health coursewk and 8 credits of approved electives. Academic Maj in Public Health Liberal Education Courses Credit Hours The following courses, which fulfill LE requirements, are required f the maj in Public Health. MATH 141 College Algebra, LE (4) MATH 150 Elementary Statistics, LE (4) CHEM 103 Introduction to Chemistry and Lab, LE (4) CHEM 106 Chemistry and Society, LE (3) PHIL 206/206D Introduction to Ethics, LE (3) BIOL 110 Environmental Biology, LE (3) PSYC 105 Introduction to Psychology, LE (4) SOC 105 Introduction to Sociology, LE (4) ANTH 252 Cultural Anthropology, LE (4) Requirement Description Credit Hours I. Feign Language Requirement 8 Public Health majs must complete eight credit hours in a single feign language. II. Prerequisite Courses 17 23 Take one of the following: 4 MATH 141 College Algebra, LE (4) MATH 150 Elementary Statistics, LE (4) Take one of the following: 3 4 CHEM 103 Introduction to Chemistry and Lab, LE (4) CHEM 106 Chemistry and Society, LE (3) CHEM 111 Principles of Chemistry I and Lab (4)
PHIL 206/206D Introduction to Ethics, LE 3 Take one of the following: 3 8 BIOL 103 Human Anatomy (4) and BIOL 104 Human Physiology (4) BIOL 105 Principles of Biology I and Lab (4) BIOL 110 Environmental Biology, LE (3) Take one of the following: 4 PSYC 105 Introduction to Psychology, LE (4) SOC 105 Introduction to Sociology, LE (4) ANTH 252 Cultural Anthropology, LE (4) III. Lower Division Public Health Courses 13 PUBH 101 Introduction to Public Health 3 PUBH 110 Health Professions and Organizations 3 PUBH 210 Infectious and Chronic Diseases 3 PUBH 250 Global Health 4 IV. Upper Division Public Health Courses 16 PUBH 305 Epidemiology 4 PUBH 310 Social and Behavial Facts in Public Health 4 PUBH 320 Environmental Health 4 PUBH 490 Capstone Public Health Research Project 4 V. Electives 16 Students choose 16 hours of Public Health related coursewk, listed on the following pages. TOTAL HOURS FOR THE ACADEMIC MAJOR 70 76 Academic Min in Public Health Requirement Description Credit Hours I. Required Courses 14 PUBH 101 Introduction to Public Health 3 PUBH 210 Infectious and Chronic Diseases 3 PUBH 250 Global Health 4 PUBH 305 Epidemiology 4 II. Electives 8 4 hours of Public Health related coursewk,* 200 above 4 4 hours of Public Health related coursewk,* 300 above 4 TOTAL HOURS FOR THE ACADEMIC MINOR 22 Suggested Elective Coursewk: Electives must be approved by the student s advis. Because of the broad nature of Public Health, electives can be chosen from a diverse number of departments and schools. Courses used as part of the maj requirements cannot be used again as electives. The following are suggestions based on the student s specific area of interest. Please note these courses may have prerequisites that will also need to be fulfilled: Administration/Policy COMM 240 Introduction to Mass Media 4 COMM 324 Electronic Communication in the Global Community 4
COMM 340 Communication They and Persuasion 4 MGMT 205 Leadership Development 2 MGMT 305 Principles of Management 4 MGMT 430 The Nonprofit Organization 4 MGMT 433 Organizational Behavi 4 PLSC 303 Public Administration and Bureaucracy 4 PLSC 327 Environmental Politics and Policy 4 Life Sciences BIOL 103 Human Anatomy and Lab 4 BIOL 104 Human Physiology and Lab 4 BIOL 105/106 Principles of Biology I and II and Lab 4 4 BIOL 111 Clinical Microbiology and Lab 4 BIOL 303 Microbiology and Lab 4 BIOL 331 Genetics and Lab 4 BIOL 332 Evolution 4 BIOL 350 Biochemistry and Lab 4 BIOL 402 Immunology and Lab 4 CHEM 111 112 Principles of Chemistry I and II and Lab 4 4 CHEM 201 Organic and Biochemistry 4 CHEM 303 304 Organic Chemistry I and II and Lab 4 4 CHEM 350 Biochemistry and Lab 4 ENVI 101 Introduction to Environmental Studies 4 Nursing NURS 210 Nutrition 3 NURS 280 Pathophysiology 3 Social Sciences ANTH 252 Cultural Anthropology, LE 4 JUST 101 Introduction to Justice Studies 4 PSYC 316 Social Psychology 4 PSYC 320 Community Psychology 4 PSYC 363 Expling Addictions 3 SOC 313 Social They 4 SOC 345 Human Sexuality 4 SOC 390 Social Research Methods 4 Statistics/Infmatics CMPT 201 Introduction to Computer Science 4 CMPT 202 Introduction to Data Structures 4 CMPT 307 Database Systems 4 CMPT 335 Computer Security 4 MATH 201B Calculus f the Life Sciences 4 MATH 210 Discrete Mathematics 4 MATH 310 Probability and Statistics 4
F me infmation contact Westminster College Office of Admissions 1840 South 1300 East Salt Lake City, UT 84105 801.832.2200 admission@westminstercollege.edu