https://www.coursera.org/course/globalhealthintro
An Introduction to Global Health
Flemming Konradsen, PhD
This course gives you an introduction to the most important challenges to human health facing the world today. Themes covered include global policies, health systems, changing disease patterns, IT and health, population dynamics, and health promotion.
Workload: 4-6 hours/week
| Sep 2nd 2013 (7 weeks long) |
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About the Course
Good health is intimately linked with personal happiness, productivity, the development of nations and the advancement of people. Increasingly, globalization processes influence the health of individuals, societies and the functions of health systems.
This course explores major themes in global health, including: health and poverty, the primary categories of global illness, including communicable and non-communicable diseases, environmental health, child health, women’s health, and health among refugees and displaced populations. It focuses on the dual burden of communicable and non-communicable disease experienced by much of the world’s population and highlights the role of the health system and diverse global actors in responding to the health needs of people worldwide.
As the deadline for meeting the Millennium Development Goals nears, course participants will also reflect on life after the MDGs by exploring the future of global health and trends in technical innovation in the fight for better health. Through lectures, readings, and assignments, course participants will be asked to think critically about the health of the world’s population and to reflect on overcoming the challenges of achieving good health around the world.
Course Syllabus
Week 1: Global Health: Policy, Politics and Partners
Week 2: Population Dynamics and Drivers of Change in Health
Week 3: Health and Diseases in Low and Middle Income Societies
Week 4: Health Systems in a Global Context
Week 5: Strategies for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
Week 6: Information/Communication Technologies and e-Health
Recommended Background
No background is required; all are welcome!
The course is on an introductory level, but for students who want to dig deeper or already have some prior knowledge from medicine, public health, politics or another related field we have compiled some additional readings, that will be presented each week.
Course Format
The class will consist of lecture videos, which will be between 8 and 14 minutes long. Each lecture video contains 1-2 integrated quiz questions. Video lectures will be given by researchers, professionals and global health practitioners from around the world - providing students with a multiple of perspectives. There will also be homework that is not part of the video, primarily in the form of reading short articles or text.
