Achieving Health Equity

Catalog description

At the core of the interdisciplinary field of public health is a desire to achieve health equity and end preventable differences in the burden of disease known as health disparities. This is done through focusing on the conditions under which human beings are born, grow, live, work, and age, a concept broadly referred to as the social determinants of health. Guided by the social determinants of health framework, students in this class will learn how social factors, such as: economic stability, neighborhoods and the built environment, and social and community context shape health and health disparities. Given the focus on social factors, a sociological perspective will be employed. Topics covered include education, income, housing, incarceration, and racism. Students will learn about interventions and policies to address these social determinants of health and how to advocate for a health issue of interest.