Syllabus

Schedule

Course Dates

Week 1: Oct 30 – Nov 6
Week 2: Nov 6 – Nov 13
Week 3: Nov 13 – Nov 20
Week 4: Nov 20 – Nov 27
Week 5: Nov 27 – Dec 4
Week 6: Dec 4 – Dec 11
Week 7: Dec 11 – Dec 18
Week 8: Dec 18 – Dec 22

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The assignment and discussion descriptions mentioned below are summaries. Please make sure to review the full prompts in Brightspace.

Week 1: General Principles of Infectious Disease Epidemiology

Learning Outcomes

• Describe the history of infectious disease epidemiology
• Describe the biological characteristics of infectious disease organisms
• Discuss the natural history of infectious diseases
• Explain disease transmission using the epidemiological triangle

Learning Activities

• Introduction Discussion 
• Week 1 Discussion – Infectious Disease of Interest:

Initial Post: Using about 500 words, describe one infectious disease that is of interest to you using these five headings: agent, host, environment, morbidity rate (for the state where you live), and mortality rate (for the state where you live).

Note: If you live outside the US, use data from Texas.

Response: Select the post of a peer and provide a detailed critique of how well their initial post described the components of the epidemiology triangle? Then describe the natural history of the infectious disease that they discussed.

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA.

• Week 1 Acknowledgement of Academic Engagement Quiz

Week 2: Completing an Outbreak Investigation

Learning Outcomes

• Apply critical thinking skills to a real-life public health issue.
• Describe the steps for completing an outbreak.
• Establish a case definition based on person, place, and time.

Learning Activities

• Week 2 Discussion – Case Definition:

Initial Post: Case definition is a key step in outbreak investigations. Therefore, clearly explain the term ‘case definition’. Describe the features of a good case definition, and explain the importance and limitations of case definitions. The length of your post should be ~ 300 – 400 words.

Response Post: Select one limitation of case definition identified by your peer, and discuss two options to overcome it.

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA.

• Week 2 Assignment – Outbreak Simulations:

Complete three simulations of an outbreak investigation from the CDC Solve the Outbreak series.

Week 3: Surveillance

Learning Outcomes

• Assess the prevalence of STIs in their states using a CDC website.
• Interpret morbidity and mortality rates.
• Create an audience-appropriate infographic that illustrates surveillance data.

Learning Activities

• Week 3 Discussion: STIs and Health Equity:

Initial Post: The discussion post this week has two components:

1. Morbidity data presentation using charts.
   • Go to this site: AtlasPlus | NCHHSTP
   • Generate one chart each for the most recent gonorrhea and chlamydia data for all ages, all races/ethnicities, and both sexes in the state where you reside. Save both graphs in one PowerPoint file and post the slides on the discussion board. (If you live outside the US, use data for Maine). 
2. Creation of an infographic for the community. 
   • The public should be aware of their risk for contracting a sexually transmitted infection, and how to prevent it from spreading. One way to do this is to communicate that information clearly and concisely. Design an infographic to create awareness of risk for sexually transmitted infections in your state of residence using surveillance data. 
   • You may use PowerPoint or any template of your choice, but it should be limited to one page, and include morbidity data, risk factors, prevention measures, and where they can go to get tested or treated. Save it as a PDF file and post it on the discussion board.

Response Post

1. Select the post of one peer from a different state. Examine the trend over the past 10 years. Is it increasing, decreasing, or the same? How do the numbers compare to those from your state? What two possible explanations could be responsible for the trend? Support your explanations with peer-reviewed or other scholarly sources. 
2. Review the post of another peer and provide feedback on their infographic. Comment on how clearly the information is presented to a lay audience, and make at least one suggestion for improvement.

• Week 3 Quiz

Week 4: Study Design: Case Control and Cohort Studies

Learning Outcomes

• Apply foundational knowledge on study designs
• State research questions related to the cause, prevention, or control of infectious disease
• Select the appropriate study design to answer research questions
• Design a data collection tool for an infectious disease outbreak investigation

Learning Activities

• Week 4 Discussion Part 1 – Questionnaire Design:

Background Info:

There has been a confirmed outbreak of a new variant of COVID-19 in Lala Land despite everyone being vaccinated. 

Initial Post:

There has been a confirmed outbreak of a new variant of COVID-19 in Lala Land despite everyone being vaccinated. 

Generate one research question suitable for a case-control study and another research question suitable for a prospective cohort study. Your research questions should have an exposure and outcome and have a ‘who’, a ‘what’, and a ‘where’. 

Then, design a questionnaire suitable for the case-control study research question using REDCap (see instructions from Week 1 on how to obtain a RedCap account). 

Your online survey should include 15 to 20 questions (excluding name, age, and address) and adhere to the following requirements:

• Use only close-ended questions.
• At least one question should require the use of branching logic. 
• At least one question should allow participants to “Select all that apply”. 
• At least one question should require the participants to select only one answer. 
• Include question numbers for each question.

You will submit 3 items for this part of the discussion post:

Item 1: One research question suitable for a case-control study, and another research question suitable for a cohort study.

Item 2: The URL to your RedCap survey for the case-control study. This should be the public URL that you can find on the left sidebar when you click “Manage Participants”.

Item 3: A copy of the data dictionary spreadsheet as an attachment.

Post early in the week so that you can get good peer feedback.

Response post:

Review the post of one classmate, and answer each question below:

1. Do both research questions clearly state the exposure and outcome? Why or why not?
2. Can the research questions be answered using the selected study designs? Why or why not?
3. Can the questions in the REDCap questionnaire answer the research question? Why or why not?

Your response post must first clearly state whether or not you agree with the question and why you agree or disagree. 

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA. Your initial post is due Sunday by 11:59 pm ET and all responses are due Wednesday by 11:59 pm ET. Any posts submitted after the end of the week will not be graded.

• Week 4 Discussion Part 2 – Study Design Calculations:

Read the following scenarios and complete the calculations using the learning materials from this week as your guide. Show all of your work and round to the tenths place.

Scenario 1:

A case-control study in Lala Land explored the odds of contracting the new variant of COVID-19 among those who did not receive the most recent COVID-19 booster.

All residents of Lala Land were surveyed. The total number of cases of the new variant in Lala Land at the time of data collection was 855. It was found that among the 8,250 residents of Lala Land, 5,150 reported getting the most recent booster. Among those who received the booster, 210 contracted the new variant of COVID-19.

•     Create a 2 x 2 table and calculate the Odds of getting the new variant of COVID-19 among those who did not receive the recent booster (the exposed group) compared to those who did receive the recent booster.

Scenario 2:

It has been 2.5  years since the outbreak of the new variant of COVID-19 in Lala Land. Six months after the outbreak, we were seeing an increase in long-term neurological deficiencies and delays among the predominantly adolescent population (ages 10 – 16 years at the time of disease) who contracted the new COVID-19 variant during the outbreak compared to the other ages who were diagnosed. For the past 18 months, we have been conducting a cohort study exploring the association between age when disease was contracted and the development of long-term neurological effects.

Here are the findings after 2 years of following the cohort. The total number of cases of the new variant of COVID-19 in Lala Land at the end of the outbreak was 1,175, with 350 of those being aged 10 – 16 years when they contracted the disease. It was found that among those who contracted the new variant, 326 have been diagnosed with some form of neurological deficiency or delay. 176 of those diagnosed with neurological deficiencies or delays were between the ages of 10 – 16 years when they had the new variant of COVID-19.

•     Create a 2 x 2 table and calculate the relative risk of developing long-term neurological delays for those who were ages 10 – 16 years when diagnosed with the new COVID-19 variant compared to those who were outside of this age cohort.

This post is due Sunday by 11:59 pm ET. A response post is not necessary for this discussion. 

Week 5: Levels of Disease Prevention

Learning Outcomes

• Apply knowledge related to different levels of disease prevention
• Evaluate the use of a technological app in the prevention of disease

Learning Activities

• Week 5 Discussion – The Use of Technology in Malaria Prevention:

Initial Post: You are the public health officer at a community health center in a rural community in Mopa, Nigeria. There is a high rate of preterm deliveries and low birth weight babies in this community due to malaria – three times the national average. Nurses have been having a hard time getting women to come in for prenatal care where they can receive prophylactic antimalarials and multivitamins. They have tried posters, flyers, brochures, and radio jingles, but none of these have worked. Your goal is to decrease malaria morbidity and mortality in Mopa.

There is a new proposal to design an app for pregnant women to remind them to come in for prenatal care. The app will also help them keep track of their clinic visits and lab results. They can also schedule a clinic visit right from within the app. A formative evaluation has determined that the intervention is feasible and acceptable.

Assuming every woman has a cell phone, and access to great internet service, list 5 evaluation questions you will use to determine the effectiveness of the app. Describe 3 challenges you anticipate with utilizing the app to increase prenatal care visits? 

Response Post: Select one of the challenges mentioned by a classmate and discuss how it can be addressed. 

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA.

• Assignment – Journal Article Summaries:

Search for 3 peer-reviewed journal articles published within the last 10 years that focus on either primary or secondary prevention of malaria, and write a one-page summary of each paper. Each journal article should focus on a different level of the socioecological model of health (For example, one individual level, one community level, and one policy level prevention strategy).

Week 6: Study Design: Experimental Studies

Learning Outcomes

• Apply foundational knowledge on experimental study designs
• Explain the application of health equity principles to a real-life public health issue
• Apply critical thinking skills related to One Health

Learning Activities

• Week 6 Discussion –  Infectious Disease and Health Equity:

Rosemill is a hypothetical neighborhood in the United States. Ninety percent of the population earn less than $50,000/year, 30% are 65 years or older, and 60% have no health insurance or are under-insured. Fifty percent are overweight or have obesity, 40% use tobacco daily, and 60% rely on public transportation. Fifty percent of the population identifies as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color.

Recently, there has been an outbreak of Gogginsitis disease (not a real disease) among dogs in the community. Gogginsitis causes a mild disease in pets, but when transmitted to humans, it causes significant morbidity and mortality. Due to inequities in care and racism, older adults, people with pre-existing health conditions, and BIPOC are at a higher risk for poor health outcomes. A safe and effective vaccine has been developed to prevent humans from contracting Gogginsitis from their pets, and everyone is eager to get vaccinated.

Initial post: Which one group should be a high priority for receiving the vaccine? What issues did you consider in making your determination? Discuss at least two.

Response: Respond to a classmate who selected a group different from yours to prioritize. Read at least one of the papers they cited. Did their cited paper fully support their argument? What other considerations do you think are missing from their discussion post?

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA.

• Week 6 Quiz

Week 7: Outbreak Investigation Plan

Learning Outcomes

• Apply concepts covered in earlier weeks of the course including case definition, generating a hypothesis, survey design, and communication.

Learning Activities

• Final Project -Outbreak Investigation Plan:

Upon completing this course, students will have a good background in the fundamentals of infectious disease epidemiology and public health pertaining to infectious diseases, and be prepared to use these skills in their practice. This final project allows the students to apply the knowledge and skills they have acquired in this class to a hypothetical infectious disease outbreak. The students are the new epidemiologist at a local health department tasked with developing a plan to investigate the outbreak of an infectious disease. The goal is to convince the city council to support and fully fund all aspects of the investigation.

Week 8: Healthcare Associated Infections

Learning Outcomes

• Apply knowledge of disease transmission principles to prevention and control practices
• Describe disease prevention and control practices for healthcare-associated infections

Learning Activities

• Week 8 Discussion – HAIs Scenario:

Initial post: Describe the path that you took to get to the “Congratulations” page.

• Did you try different solutions first, or did you end up there right away?
• Was there any step that was more difficult than others or were they all relatively hard/easy? Why?

You will be able to go through the exercise in Twine as many times as you want, choosing different paths each time. However, your initial post should focus on a single path—your first one. There is not a single “correct” path. You are not being graded on the path you chose, but rather on your ability to critically analyze your choices, what went into those choices, and their apparent consequences.

Response 1: Examine the path chosen by one of your peers. Identify at least one instance in which your peer may have been challenged by a hypothetical colleague for the choice they made—in other words, a hypothetical colleague who believes your peer should have chosen a different step in that instance. State specifically what the colleague might say is the better choice, and how they might support the alternative path. Cite peer-reviewed publications to justify the alternative path.

Response 2: Review the initial post from a different peer as well as the response(s) to that peer’s post. How might your peer respond to the colleague’s challenge? In other words, how might your peer justify their original path, given the arguments presented against that path? 
Then, thinking more broadly, state at least two challenges hospitals face in reducing HAIs. Why do you think these challenges are particularly difficult to overcome?  

Please cite all sources referenced using AMA.

Student Resources

Online Student Support

Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you. Please don't hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.

Questions? Visit the Student Support Public Health page

UNE Libraries:

• Library Access for all students: Your library login ID and password are the same as the ones you use to log into Brightspace.
• Public Health Databases: https://library.une.edu/library-materials/find/research-by-subject/public-health/
• Library Questions: Ask a librarian or phone library staff at (207) 602-2361 or (207) 221-4330.

UNE Student Academic Success Center

UNE's Student Academic Success Center (SASC) offers a range of free online services to support your academic achievement. Writing support, ESOL support, study strategy and learning style consultations, as well as downloadable resources, are available to all matriculating students. The SASC also offers tutoring for GPH 712 Epidemiology, GPH 716 Biostatistics, GPH 717 Applied Epidemiology, GPH 718 Biostatistics II, and GPH 719 Research Methods. To make an appointment for any of these services, go to une.tutortrac.com. For more information and to view and download writing and studying resources, please visit:

• UNE Student Academic Success Center

Information Technology Services (ITS)

• ITS Contact: Toll Free Help Desk 24 hours/7 days per week at 1-877-518-4673

Accommodations

Any student who would like to request, or ask any questions regarding, academic adjustments or accommodations must contact the Student Access Center at (207) 221-4438 or pcstudentaccess@une.edu. Student Access Center staff will evaluate the student's documentation and determine eligibility of accommodation(s) through the Student Access Center registration procedure.

Online Peer Support

Togetherall is a 24/7 communication and emotional support platform monitored by trained clinicians. It’s a safe place online to get things off your chest, have conversations, express yourself creatively, and learn how to manage your mental health. If sharing isn’t your thing, Togetherall has other tools and courses to help you look after yourself with plenty of resources to explore. Whether you’re struggling to cope, feeling low, or just need a place to talk, Togetherall can help you explore your feelings in a safe supportive environment. You can join Togetherall using your UNE email address.

Information Technology Services (ITS)

Students should notify their Student Support Specialist and instructor in the event of a problem relating to a course. This notification should occur promptly and proactively to support timely resolution.

ITS Contact: Toll-Free Help Desk 24 hours/7 days per week at 1-877-518-4673.

Career Ready Program

The College of Professional Studies supports its online students and alumni in their career journey!

The Career Ready Program provides tools and resources to help students explore and hone in on their career goals, search for jobs, create and improve professional documents, build professional network, learn interview skills, grow as a professional, and more. Come back often, at any time, as you move through your journey from career readiness as a student to career growth, satisfaction, and success as alumni.

Policies

AMA Writing Style Statement

The American Medical Association Manual (AMA) of Style, 11th edition is the required writing format for this course. Additional support for academic writing and AMA format is provided throughout the coursework as well as at the UNE Portal for Online Students.

Online resources: AMA Style Guide

Turnitin Originality Check and Plagiarism Detection Tool

The College of Professional Studies uses Turnitin to help deter plagiarism and to foster the proper attribution of sources. Turnitin provides comparative reports for submitted assignments that reflect similarities in other written works. This can include, but is not limited to, previously submitted assignments, internet articles, research journals, and academic databases.

Make sure to cite your sources appropriately as well as use your own words in synthesizing information from published literature. Webinars and workshops, included early in your coursework, will help guide best practices in APA citation and academic writing.

You can learn more about Turnitin in the guide on how to navigate your Similarity Report.

Technology Requirements

Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Graduate Programs: Technical Requirements

Course Evaluation Policy

Course surveys are one of the most important tools that University of New England uses for evaluating the quality of your education, and for providing meaningful feedback to instructors on their teaching. In order to assure that the feedback is both comprehensive and precise, we need to receive it from each student for each course. Evaluation access is distributed via UNE email at the beginning of the last week of the course.

Late Policy

Students are responsible for submitting work by the date indicated in Brightspace.

Quizzes and Tests: Quizzes and tests must be completed by the due date. They will not be accepted after the due date.

Assignments: Unless otherwise specified, assignments will be accepted up to 3 days late; however, there is a 10% grade reduction (from the total points) for the late submission. After three days the assignment will not be accepted.

Discussion posts: If the initial post is submitted late, but still within the discussion board week, there will be a 10% grade reduction from the total discussion grade (e.g., a 3 point discussion will be reduced by 0.3 points). Any posts submitted after the end of the Discussion Board week will not be graded.

Please make every effort ahead of time to contact your instructor and your student support specialist if you are not able to meet an assignment deadline. Arrangements for extenuating circumstances may be considered by faculty.

Student Handbook Online - Policies and Procedures

The policies contained within this document apply to all students in the College of Graduate and Professional Studies. It is each student's responsibility to know the contents of this handbook.

Student Handbook

UNE Course Withdrawal

Please contact your student support specialist if you are considering dropping or withdrawing from a course. The last day to drop for 100% tuition refund is the 2nd day of the course. Financial Aid charges may still apply. Students using Financial Aid should contact the Financial Aid Office prior to withdrawing from a course.

Academic Integrity

The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable. For information about plagiarism and academic misconduct, please visit https://www.une.edu/studentlife/plagiarism.

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:

1. Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
2. Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
3. Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
4. Multiple submissions of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
5. Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.

Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations.  Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final.  Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.