| Unit name | Essentials of Public Health and Health Improvement |
|---|---|
| Unit code | BRMSM0010 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Kidger |
| 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 | Bristol Medical School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Health Sciences |
This unit aims to introduce students to the ideas and principles underpinning public health and health improvement, including concepts of measuring disease burden, health inequalities, appropriate use of data to inform public health policy and practice, an introduction to screening programmes and the role of national and international public health organisations. The underpinning theories of health improvement, and the key models and interventions utilised at both the individual and population level with be studied, including behaviour change interventions, community development programmes and the use of mass and social media. It will outline the different levels of disease prevention, and will consider the relative merits of both universal and targeted interventions.
Throughout the unit students will be reminded of the wider determinants of health and encouraged to think about the application of public health practice in other (health and non-health) disciplines. Further, the unit will give students an understanding of relevant ethical concepts in relation to health inequalities, public health and health improvement. Students will explore the developments and challenges facing the global public health community in order that they appreciate the immediate relevance of public health issues. Research-led teaching will draw on particularly pertinent health improvement areas, such as cancer, CHD, mental health, obesity and substance use, to illustrate key concepts, and will include consideration of life-course approaches to prevention. This unit will provide essential context to the skills and knowledge gained throughout the rest of the course.
There will be 10 teaching weeks. Teaching will include learning activities set by the tutor including lectures (synchronous and asynchronous), small group work, discussions, group presentations, individual tasks, and practical activities (face to face or online).
Directed and self-directed learning will include activities such as reading, accessing web-based supplementary materials, critical analysis and completion of assessments.
Ongoing checks on students’ understanding (e.g. using quizzes, peer-based question and answer, or e-voting) will be incorporated into the teaching and learning material, to provide a means of testing progress as students advance through the unit. We will also use a formative assessment activity as preparation for coursework 1.
Summative Assessment:
Coursework 1: A written assignment (3000 words) will form 70% of the overall unit mark. Students will be required to choose from a list of health improvement interventions (addressing key topics covered on the course) and write a critique of the intervention. (ILOs 1-5, 7).
Coursework 2: A written assignment (up to 1,500 words) consisting of short answers will contribute 30% of the total unit mark. (ILOs 3,6,8).
An overall score of 50% will be required to pass the unit.
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. BRMSM0010).
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.
