PUBH 100 Foundations of Public Health
This course will introduce students to the core concepts and methods in the field of public health, a field which has long been understood as the "science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical health and efficiency through organized community efforts." Public health measures are the reason that more people today live longer, healthier lives than they did one century ago, although there are still vast disparities in health throughout the world that remain to be addressed. Through a brief survey of the history and philosophy of public health as it has developed in the United States and in other regions of the world, this course will offer students an initial exposure to some of the methods and tools of public health data collection. A closer, more-detailed examination of a few case studies will increase students' understanding of the ethical, economic, and policy-related dimensions of public health, and why communications and knowledge of the underlying science of human health and disease are essential to successful public health initiatives.