Infectious Diseases and Public Health
CRN
Course Number
Credits
Description
Infectious Diseases and Public Health: Why Infectious Diseases are Some of the World's Most Dangerous Killers, and Public Health Measures to Investigate and Control Them
Infectious diseases such as AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis are some of the world's biggest causes of illness and death, especially in developing countries and among the world's most marginalized populations. This seminar course will focus on the considerable burden due to infectious diseases, the underlying risk factors that lead to their emergence and spread, and different prevention and control strategies that have been used to help reduce their impact. Students will be introduced to some of the key concepts in epidemiology (the study of disease in populations), general principles of infectious disease epidemiology (such as outbreak investigation and disease surveillance), major infectious diseases and methods of transmission (such as insect vectors, contaminated food/water, respiratory spread, and sexual transmission), and different control strategies (such as vaccination, behavior change and population screening). We will also discuss social determinants of health, and why some populations are most heavily affected.
Prerequisites
FAIR 206A, or other lower level science course
Materials Fee
Texts
Oren and Brown. Infectious Disease Epidemiology: An Introduction. (Springer), 2023: 6 month E-book rental available for $37.99
Additional readings will be made available on Canvas.
Credit/Evaluation
S/NX grading; narrative evaluation required for credit.
Students are expected to attend class and participate in class discussions. Methods of instruction include lectures, in-class discussion, readings, and take-home exercises, where students will be asked to discuss a specific infectious disease. Students will be asked to participate in a group presentation on a challenging infectious disease situation.