Principles of Public Health

Principles of Public Health introduces the major concepts of public health and thedeterminants of health status in communities. The course emphasizes theecological model that focuses on the linkages and relationships among multiplenatural and social determinants affecting health. As a relative concept, thehealth of populations is assessed through comparisons of temporal, spatial, anddemographic dimensions of disease burden. The goal of public health is tounderstand why and how different populations carry different kinds and amountsof disease burden, and to use that knowledge for improving health by preventingdisease. 

Students in the course will explore successful examples inpublic health, including how scientific discoveries and regulatory policieshave both contributed to mitigate risk factors and improve health outcomes. Howsocioeconomic and cultural factors modify the effectiveness of riskintervention and disease prevention strategies. How individual actions andcollective initiatives play important roles in determining the status ofhealth. In addition, how the various methodological approaches that guidediscoveries in public health have been applied from the local scale to theglobal level.