Course Descriptions for Online MPH and Certificates

HSA 5125 Introduction to Health Services (3). The American health care system is broadly analyzed in social, economic, and political terms, including examination of its major operational and programmatic components as they have evolved in their changing patterns and trends of organizational development.

HUN 6522 Public Health Nutrition (3). Development and assessment of nutrition programs for the general population throughout the life cycle. Prerequisites: DIE 3317 or equivalent.

IHS 6501 Research Methods in Health and Social Services (3). Study of scientific research, inductive and deductive thinking, research methods and design as applied to healthcare, social services and government agencies. Prerequisite: Undergraduate Statistics.

PHC 5409 Public Health Behavior Change Theory and Practice (3). A course for health promotion practitioners who lack formal training in behavior change foundations and strategies. The course emphasizes applications to practical development of health promotion interventions.

PHC 5415 Public Health in Minority/Urban Population (3). Covers the scope of Public Health Issues related to minority and urban populations with an emphasis on health care status, utilization of the health care system and expenditures.

PHC 6000 Introduction to Public Health Epidemiology (3). Introduction to the study of the distribution, determinants, and measurement of health and disease in populations, including study methods and their application to specific diseases and conditions.

PHC 6001 Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology (3). This course covers outbreaks; cluster analysis; cross-sectional, case-control, cohort, ecological and time series designs; surveillance programs; environmental cancer; reproductive hazards, biological monitoring and biomarkers. Prerequisites: PHC 6315 and PHC 6000.

PHC 6002 Infectious and Chronic Disease Epidemiology (3). A review of selected epidemiologic research methodology as it applies to infectious and chronic diseases and its application towards understanding selected major infectious and chronic diseases from a population based perspective. Prerequisite: PHC 6000 Intro to Epidemiology.

PHC 6004 Injury Epidemiology and Prevention (3). Analyzes the impact and extent of injuries as a public health problem. Issues of prevention, sources of data, environment, social and occupational aspects are included in an epidemiological approach. Prerequisite: PHC 6000.

PHC 6007 Cancer Epidemiology (3). This course will provide an understanding of the epidemiological patterns, etiology and risk factors of cancer from a community and population perspective. Prerequisite: PHC 6000.

PHC 6009 AIDS Epidemiology and Control (3). Reviews the epidemiology, virology, immunology, and clinical aspects of HIV, and also examines its impact upon risk groups and the responses of society to the epidemic.

PHC6111 Primary Care Strategies (3). Examines the rationale, planning and implementation of community-oriented primary health care. Emphasizes primary care as integral part of the health care system and an essential part of public health. Prerequisites: PHC 6500 or permission of the instructor.

PHC 6197 Data Management and Applied Epidemiologic Analysis (3). Covers practical issues related to the management, security, and analysis of epidemiologic data by creating, managing, and analyzing an epidemiologic database using statistical software packages.

PHC 6307 Environmental Health Monitoring (3). Surveys available mechanisms utilized by public health and environmental agencies to monitor levels of pollution, environmental quality, and change in environmental conditions which impact human health. Prerequisites: PHC 6000, IHS 6508, PHC 6315.

PHC 6310 Environmental Occupational Toxicology (3). Theory and practice of occupational and environmental toxicology; health effects of toxins in humans; principles of toxicology; toxicokinetics; and health effects of toxins on organ systems. Prerequisite: PHC 6315.

PHC 6315 Public Health and Environmental Management (3). An overview of public health philosophy and government organization in the provision of official agency, environmental, and preventive medicine services, with particular emphasis on the regulatory and surveillance responsibilities authorized in the public sector.

PHC 6410 Health Behavior and Public Health (3). The overall goal of this course is to introduce the student to the learning and behavioral science theories that provide the framework for the practice of health promotion and public health. Prerequisites: Public Health major or permission of the instructor.

PHC 6501 Health Promotion Communication Theory and Design (3). Theory, design, and implementation of health education communication utilized in reaching the public. Emphasis on the critical analysis of the communication processes; group techniques and media methods; and the consultation process. Prerequisites: Health Promotion Concentration or by permission of the instructor.

PHC 6503 Community Organization for Health Promotion (3). Emphasis is on the diagnosis of community health problems and various organizational strategies utilized for effective solution. Review and analysis of community organization process; resources; and the role of health promotion specialist. Prerequisites: Health Promotion Concentration or permission of the instructor.

PHC 6504 Introduction to Public Health Education and Wellness (3). Primarily intended to introduce graduate students to concepts and principles underlying the use of Public Health and Behavioral Strategies to positively influence behavioral patterns. Prerequisites: Public Health major or permission of the instructor.

PHC (HIS) 6508 Health Statistics (3). An introduction to the basic principles of inferential statistics as applied to public health. The course includes those components of biometry routinely used in public health. Prerequisite: Undergraduate course in statistics. Open only to graduate students in Public Health.

PHC 6539 Health Demography (3). The study of basic population structure, composition, trends and relationship to health status. Implications of demographic trends, policies for public health; population growth, immigration, infant mortality. Prerequisites: IHS 6508 or permission of the instructor.

PHC 6580 Contemporary Issues in Health Promotion (3). Current problems and findings in health promotion content areas such as smoking, alcohol, and drug misuse, family health, safety, physical fitness, communicable and chronic diseases will be discussed. Prerequisites: PHC 6000 and IHS 6508.

PHC 6585 Health Promotion in Clinical Settings (3). Analysis of the role, methods, and techniques of health promotion and patient education pertaining to hospitals, clinics and other ambulatory health services. Prerequisites: PHC 6000 and IHS 6508.

PHC 6589 Health Promotion in Institutional Settings (3). This course will investigate the role, methods and techniques used to promote health in diverse settings such as clinic and community agencies, schools, universities and workplaces.

PHC 6750 Program Development and Evaluation in Health Promotion (3). Principles and procedures in health promotion program development and evaluation. Emphasis on needs assessment, planning models, evaluation designs, data collection, analysis and reporting. Prerequisites: PHC 6000 and IHS 6508.

PHC 6907 Independent Study: Public Health (1-3). Allows student investigations of special topics and issues utilizing literature searches, analysis, or active performance in public health settings under the direction of faculty supervision. Prerequisite: Permission of the faculty advisor.

PHC 6945 Supervised Field Experience in Public Health (1-6). Preceptor guided experience in a public health organization. Experience will include orientation; observation; and participation in the aspects of the agency’s program. Prerequisite: Permission of the faculty advisor.

PHC 6977 Master’s Research Project (1-6). This course provides the student with an opportunity to explore in depth a specific topic or issue of interest in public health.

PHC 6XXX Master’s Thesis (1-6). Supervised research on an original public health problem or topic submitted in partial fulfillment of master’s degree requirement. Prerequisite: Permission of major professor.