Public Health

GRN 250

This class explores the processes and meanings of "growing old," focusing on influences from childhood through adolescence and adulthood, with constant attention to how these processes and meanings are situated in time and space and eventually inform individual and societal conceptions of and actions concerning old age. The many faces of aging are examined from an array of disciplinary perspectives using selected readings, film documentaries, consideration of personal/family histories, and a series of exercises that allow students to place one’s own life experience and thoughts of growing old in broader societal context.

BST 230

BST 230 provides students with an introduction to statistical concepts that are important for solving real-world public health problems. This course will present statistical principles and associated scientific reasoning underlying public health practice and health policy decision- making. Topics include data visualization, summary statistics, statistical inference, study design and data analysis, and strategies for articulating and evaluating claims using statistical constructs.

Prereq: UKCore course in Quantitative Foundations.

CPH 310

This course will outline the history of epidemiology as a science and examine its wide-ranging contributions to the fields of public health, medicine, and the social sciences. This course will focus on epidemiological methods to investigate health outcomes and identify associated and causative factors of disease in populations.

CPH 320

An overview of the physical factors that influence human health, including hazards from unsanitary water, polluted air, traumatic injury hazards, toxins, radiologic risks, and other features of the natural and human made environment that can kill, injure, maim, and cause disease in human populations. Special focus is given to understanding the relationships between biological, chemical, and other factors that produce unhealthy environments that sicken individuals throughout their lifespan. Additional topics include the important influence of environmental hygiene, restaurant inspections, occupational safety and health issues, clean water standards, air pollution regulations, and other laws and regulations that protect the health and safety of human populations.

Prereq: BPH Majors only.

CPH 330

CPH 330 focuses on applying methods for solving public health analytical problems. This course will build on the statistical principles and scientific reasoning introduced in introductory statistics courses, but will focus on the application of methods for categorical data analysis. Topics include data visualization, exploratory data analysis, summary statistics, statistical testing, estimation, confounding, and the use of regression models commonly encountered in public health. An emphasis on data analytic methods will also introduce students to the use of statistical software.

Prereq: CPH 310 & BPH Majors only or permission of instructor.

CPH 350

This upper division course introduces students to U.S. health system and its public health and health care components. The course explores the history of these systems in the U.S., their current status in terms of financing and law, and the role of health policy in system change. The course begins with an overview of the U.S. health care system and a comparison to other systems around the world. We then explore the history of the U.S. system, in terms of its public health and health care components, and its current state, including recent developments in both public health and health care. The course ends with an examination of the role of health policy in systems change. As part of this tour of the U.S. health system, students will learn about the role of government and private organizations in both public health and health care.

Prereq: CPH 201, CPH 202, or CPH 203.

CPH 440

This course will provide students with an overview of how the social and behavioral sciences contribute to public health practice in the rapidly expanding field of health behavior. Emphasis will be placed on theory- driven approaches that are supported by empirical investigations. Students will acquire a working knowledge of foundational theories used in public health practice and evaluation methods used in health behavior intervention programs. The course includes a summary of major public health issues in the United States including an overview of health equity. The course also includes training on the translation of research findings into the public health practice through the development of a theory informed health behavior intervention program.

Prereq: BPH Majors only.

CPH 455

This course serves as one of two culminating courses for the Bachelor of Public Health (BPH) degree and brings together two key applications of public health knowledge: Practicing public health in organizational settings and communicating as a public health professional. In this course, students complete an experiential learning activity in order to gain a practical understanding of public health organizations, broadly defined. Students will use what they observe during the experience, as well as what they have learned throughout the BPH program, to advocate for public health through media and policy advocacy. In this context, students will develop the skills to create public health communication using theory and evidence-based approaches.

Prereq: BPH Majors only plus CPH 310, CPH 320, CPH 330, CPH 350, and CPH 440.

CPH 476G

This course provides students with basic knowledge about the issues of global public health and its importance to all peoples of the globe. After receiving an introduction to the principles and goals of global public health, students will begin to acquire functional knowledge of the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of global public health practice. Key content areas such as health determinants, issues of health, education, and poverty, ethical and human rights concerns, the impact of culture on global public health, the burden of disease on the global human population, and other pertinent global public health topics will become focal points for class discussion. This course will emphasize theory-driven empirical investigation of key behavioral issues that influence the health and well-being of people around the globe. Case studies of global public health issues with be utilized.

Prereq: CPH 440 & BPH Majors only or by permission of the instructor.

CPH 470

This course will provide Bachelor of Public Health (BPH) students a culminating experience through a practice-based simulation of community health assessment and community health improvement strategies grounded in the Evidence-Informed Decision-Making model. Students will use a synthesis of the BPH program’s core coursework (epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental health, population health management and policy, and health behavior) augmented by concepts of health equity and systems thinking. This course is a Graduation Composition and Communication Requirement (GCCR) course in certain programs, and hence is not likely to be eligible for automatic transfer credit to UK.

Prereq: BPH Majors only plus CPH 310, CPH 320, CPH 330, CPH 350 and CPH 440.