PH Course Descriptions

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Being offered Spring 2024 - See departmental listings for non-Public Health course descriptions.

PH 216 - Intro to Public Health (1 Credits)
The field of Public Health integrates knowledge of biology, human behavior, and social constructs with problem-solving strategies to address issues of disease facing distinct populations. This course will provide an introduction to principles of public health and epidemiology, social determinants of health, the biological basis of the most prevalent communicable and non-communicable diseases, as well as an exploration of global public health issues. Students will utilize this knowledge in a final project to identify and characterize a local public health issue, followed by developing an appropriate intervention or prevention plan. Does not count toward the biology major requirements; fulfills the Public Health minor fundamentals course requirement. Fulfills the SS distribution (2013 curriculum) Core Course, 200 level.
Pre-req: None

PH 3001 - Basic Principles of Epidemiol (1 Credits)
This course introduces the basic concepts of public health and epidemiology, including the assessment of diseases, and the examination of the causation and association of diseases with environmental and lifestyle risk factors. We will explore the historical and current contributions made through the use of epidemiology in shaping our understanding of disease in populations. The course will introduce areas of specialization within the field of epidemiology including infectious and non-infectious diseases, social epidemiology, and other health issues.  Fulfills SS distribution. Core Course & Scientific Perspectives elective, 200 level.
Pre-req: PH 216 or STAT 113

PH 3016 - Experiential Learning w/CBL (1 Credits)
Experiential Learning in Public Health, CBL: This community-based learning (CBL) course provides hands-on experience working with local public health related organizations. Students will explore social, environmental, cultural, and nutritional impacts to public health in the north country and connect local experiences to broader regions and risk factors. Course materials survey the effects of environmental and cultural risk factors on human health and communities while exploring policies and programs designed to edify vulnerable populations. This course requires approximately 2 hours of service/week working with a chosen organization. Transportation and support will be provided by the CBL office. This course includes an experiential learning component known as Community-Based Learning (CBL). The CBL component will require students to participate in a community placement, outside of class time, on a weekly basis throughout the semester. Students can expect to spend two hours per week at their assigned placement site. Please note travel time to and from the site is not included and is moderate for placements beyond the Canton community. Students do not need a vehicle to participate in CBL classes. Critical Humanistic Perspectives elective, 200 level.
Pre-req: PH 216

PH 3079 - Our Stressed Seas N/S (1 Credits)
The vast ocean covers over 70% of our planet and is a place of wonder, discovery, history, and human impact. This course will review a variety of environmental topics and protections of the open ocean and urban estuaries. You will explore the effects of urban development over time on coastal ecosystems through the lens of major U.S. cities. You will relate the changing world ocean to global scale environmental problems ranging from over harvesting, contamination, to climate change. With an understanding of ocean processes, you will evaluate potential threats and effective policies intended to protect the ocean environment. Critical Humanistic Perspectives elective, 200 level.
Pre-req: ENVS 101 or PH 216

PH 4001 - Social Determinants of Health (1 Credits)
The objective of this course is to examine, in-depth, how some of the critical social determinants of health, such as race, gender, poverty, geography, affect health outcomes. The course is organized around substantive topic areas (e.g., obesity, disability, mental health, youth, and substance abuse, stress and social support, neighborhoods, and environments), with a focus on understanding the role of social factors in shaping health and health inequities. Concepts of community, culture, and social justice will be explored, and students will examine how these concepts can be applied to public health interventions. Fulfills SS distribution. Core Course & Critical Humanistic Perspectives elective, 300 level.
Pre-req: PH 216

PH 4025 - Philosophy Health & Human Science (1 Credits)
This course introduces students to philosophical issues in the human sciences (e.g., economics, epidemiology, political science, sociology), especially philosophical work focusing on economics, epidemiology, and sociology. Philosophers of science have studied the foundational assumptions of the various human sciences and have unearthed philosophical issues that set these sciences apart from natural sciences like physics, chemistry, and biology. Philosophers have examined the ways in which the human sciences are connected to our moral and political values, the philosophical implications of how successful the human sciences are compared to the natural sciences, and whether human societies and populations can be studied scientifically at all. Along the way, philosophers have examined traditional questions asked in the philosophy of science about the extent to which successful science provides true descriptions of reality, and whether and to what extent science can ever achieve objectivity. Our aim is to explore these issues by looking at some of the most prominent research strategies used in the human sciences, especially modeling. This course assumes no familiarity with philosophy or the health or social sciences - students from different disciplinary backgrounds are welcome (and encouraged) to register! Critical Humanistic Perspectives elective, 300 level.
Pre-req: Any ECON, GOVT, PHIL, or SOC course, or BIO 101 or BIO 102 or PH 216

PH 4041 - Issues-Environmental Health ESP (1 Credits)
ENVS Majors and PH Majors/Minors Only. This course explores environmental risk factors and the physical well-being of individuals and vulnerable populations. You will study a range of interactions between humans and the environment that contribute to human and ecological health problems. Topics include risk factors and hazards in food production, waste systems, infrastructure, air and water quality, lifestyle, poverty, and energy production. This course provides an interdisciplinary approach to understanding environmental public health. You will read and discuss personal environmental health stories from books such as: Living Downstream, Child of the Dark, and Swimming to Antarctica. Scientific Perspectives elective, 300 level.
Pre-req: ENVS 101 or PH 216