Unit Outline

This unit introduces the scope of public health practice in the 21st century and the social, political and economic context within which public health practitioners operate. The unit combines theoretical and practical material to assist students to understand the social and economic determinants of health, the importance of improved equity to raising health standards worldwide, nationally and locally, and the ways in which communities can be engaged and empowered to identify and address issues that affect their health. Different health outcomes for people across a range of communities will be critically examined in relation to public health practice.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1.	Differentiate between a range of definitions of health, and consider the contexts in which these definitions are applied
2.	Define public health, its principal components and its development within Australian and international contexts
3.	Describe the concept of the social determinants of health and inequities in health, and discuss their influence on the health outcomes of populations
4.	Critique how public health priority issues are addressed by health policy at a local, national and international level
5.	Investigate key challenges to the health of populations and explore potential solutions at a local, national and international level

Alterations as a result of student feedback

This unit is reviewed and updated regularly to incorporate new evidence and changes in policy and practice. Whilst we offer a suggested schedule of completion for the discussion boards all discussion boards will remain open until week 13 of semester to offer students maximum flexibility. With the addition of new student cohorts (Master of Physiotherapy, Master of Speech Pathology) we continue to meet with course coordinators to make improvements to the unit in line with course requirements and student feedback.

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Forum discussions	Week 1	20 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 2:	Conference abstract plus presentation	Week 9	30 %	LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 3:	Essay	Week 13	50 %	LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Forum discussions

Task Description:

The Discussion Board is an important forum that promotes interaction and discussion between you and your fellow students. Online studies can be isolating if there are no opportunities for interaction with your peers. For this unit you are required to take the time to interact with fellow students through the Discussion Board.

Task Length:

250 words

Due Date:

Week 1

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Engage in relevant, quality academic discourse with your peers	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
2	Demonstrate academic writing skills including adhering to English writing conventions and correct referencing of literature sources	LO3, LO4, LO5
3	Respond to other students with respectful language	LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment Task 2: Conference abstract plus presentation

Task Description:

You are required to prepare a conference abstract and accompanying narrated PowerPoint presentation or video-recorded PowerPoint presentation uploaded to YouTube for the Australian Public Health annual conference.

Task Length:

10 minutes plus 500 words

Due Date:

Week 9

Weight:

30 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Analyse health determinants, health inequity and describe a public health approach to a selected topic	LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
2	Develop well supported arguments drawing on scholarly literature	LO3, LO4, LO5
3	Demonstrate academic skills including adhering to English conventions, referencing of literature sources and oral presentation	LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment Task 3: Essay

Task Description:

Background: Cardiovascular disease is considered by the World Health Organisation to be the “world’s number one killer.” This group of diseases causes considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide, and greater than 75% of cardiovascular disease deaths occur in low and middle income countries (http://www.who.int/cardiovascular_diseases/en/).

Task: You are to write an essay describing the global health problem of cardiovascular disease. You should consider how the epidemiology of heart disease differs in low, middle and high-income countries, and the reasons for this.

Task Length:

3000 words

Due Date:

Week 13

Weight:

50 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Analyse a global public health issue and critique policy and strategic responses	LO3, LO4, LO5
2	Develop well supported arguments for policy recommendations	LO4, LO5
3	Demonstrate academic writing skills including adhering to English writing conventions and correct referencing of literature sources	LO3, LO4, LO5

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.