School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine: Course Descriptions
2008-2009 Academic Year
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UNDERGRADUATE REQUIRED COURSES IN PUBLIC HEALTH
SPHU101 Epidemics, Revolutions, and Response: The Historical
Development of Public Health (3)
Students are introduced to the concepts and practice of public health in the U.S.
and internationally by tracing its historical evolution. Classic public health
problems and their resolution will be discussed in the context of the broader
contemporary social environment. The latter part of the course is focused on
public health practice in both the U.S. and developing countries, with a
consideration of the structure, function, and financing of public health
organizations. The many different roles for public health professionals in these
organizations also are described.
SPHU 102 The Cell, The Individual, and The Community (3)
This course provides a foundation of knowledge about the human body in health
and disease. It gives an overview of important concepts on the biological
mechanisms of disease at the cellular, individual, and population/community
levels. The course will focus on a natural progression in the development of
health and disease, moving from a discussion of the cell, to the individual, and
finally, to specific infectious or chronic disease states and processes. The role of
the community in public health will be emphasized. This course is designed to
provide a good foundation in the mechanisms of health and disease. Furthermore,
each lecture will offer insights into current public health topics and research
trends. Each lecture will address the following: 1) specific mechanisms of health
and disease; 2) topics of special public health importance, and 3) a scientific
update on research in the news.
SPHU 201 Disease Ecology and Public Health Concepts (3)
The course introduces students to the strategies employed by public health
professionals to maintain and enhance the health of the population. Humans will
be considered as part of the ecologic systems that influence the patterns and
mechanisms of health and disease. Students will come to understand the basic
concepts and language of public health science and practice. The course will
review the distribution of public health problems and identify important biologic,
social and environmental determinants of disease. Examples of interventions
designed to solve public health problems will be drawn for both national and
international experience.
SPHU 202 Genetics and Human Health (3)
Students examine the past, present, and future relationships of public health and
genetics. Genetics and public health have a long tradition of interaction, and the
recent advances in genetics will have a dramatic impact on public health in the
future. Topics covered in this course include the classical and molecular genetics
of humans, human gene structure and function, the genetic basis of disease,
mutagenesis, polymorphisms, epigenetics, human and pathogen bioinformatics,