| Unit name | Law, Governance and Health |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWDM0134 |
| Credit points | 30 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Professor. Quick |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | University of Bristol Law School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
The Law, Governance and Health unit examines the related ideas of health governance and governance for health. It examines both theoretical and practical questions and engages critically with questions of how health should factor into the governance roles of different public and private institutions, what constraints there are on health policy broadly conceived, and how accountability may be achieved in relation to different institutional actors engaged in health across sectors. Given the breadth of its scope, practical areas of analysis will draw from different sectors, and students will learn about the application of different modes of critical understanding to describe, explain, and evaluate health governance and governance for health.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
For students on the Health Law and Society LLM, this is a mandatory unit studied in TB1. For students on other LLM programmes, it provides the opportunity to learn about the relationship between Law, Governance and Health. The Unit aims to develop an understanding of Law, Governance, and Health, and develop an institutional and context-based approach to the study of key questions in Health Law. As appropriate, these will be considered in light of associated social, political, and regulatory perspectives.
An overview of content
We will begin by introducing the concepts of Law, Governance and Health and explore the relationship between them. This will be a key thread running through the course. We will then examine the history, funding, structure and performance of the National Health Service, and draw comparisons with other Health Systems. This will provide the foundations to then address a selection of topics which may include, but are not limited to, the following: the Regulation of Health Care Professionals, Health Economics, Health Politics, Health in all Policies, Patient Safety, Regulation of Health Innovation, Health Research Governance, Coronial Inquests and Health.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
This unit will advance your substantive, critical and contextual knowledge and understanding of Law. Importantly, it will do so in a way that expands how you think about the influence of existing laws (or their absence), how you envisage the limits of Law, and how you see law as a tool to effect (or hamper) change.
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this unit, a successful student will be able to:
Your learning on the unit is achieved through mixed methods of teaching and learning, incorporated in lectures, guided independent reading, and a variety of learning activities which will prepare you well for our seminars. The unit aims to enable you to attain, synthesise, and critically engage with wide ranging materials and ideas. As such, you will receive clear framing and guidance in lectures and teaching materials. This will enable you to undertake your own independent reading and study. Your learning will be secured through preparation for, and participation in, fortnightly seminars where you will: discuss and debate critical questions; check and advance your understanding; engage in tasks that promote breadth and depth of understanding.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Seminar preparation will include essay style questions where you will be able to practise skills for researching, planning and writing research essays, with oral feedback provided in class. The formative assessment will require you to craft an introduction to a research essay (300 words) and design a detailed research essay plan (700 words). This will help prepare you for the summative assessment which will require you to write a 4,000 word research essay from a selection of titles provided. You will receive individual feedback on your essay introduction and plan, as well as broader more general support with essay preparation and writing.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The unit is assessed by a single, 4,000-word research essay, from a list of questions provided. This is a critical, discursive essay, responding to a question based on the content of the unit. It will allow you to demonstrate your attainment of all the unit’s intended learning outcomes.
When assessment does not go to plan:
When a student fails the unit and is eligible to resubmit, the unit will be reassessed on a like-for-like basis with new assessment questions.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. LAWDM0134).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
