Syllabus

Schedule

Course Schedule:

Each week opens on Wednesday at 12:01 AM Eastern Time. Each week closes on Wednesday at 11:59 pm ET, with the exception of Week 8, which ends on Sunday.

Week 1:	Jan. 4 – Jan. 11
Week 2:	Jan. 11 – Jan. 18
Week 3:	Jan. 18 – Jan. 25
Week 4:	Jan. 25 – Feb. 1
Week 5:	Feb. 1 – Feb. 8
Week 6:	Feb. 8 – Feb. 15
Week 7:	Feb. 15 – Feb. 22
Week 8:	Feb. 22 – Feb. 26 (Sunday)

 

Weekly Schedule:

*Check the readings section each week in Blackboard for additional readings.

Week 1: Principles of Disease Transmission

Weekly Outcomes:

• Relate key facts of infectious disease in order to understand the modes of transmission, geographical distribution, seasonal variations, the populations affected, the vectors, etc. of the disease.
• Explain disease transmission utilizing the epidemiological triangle.
• Describe the host, the agent and the environment of parasitic disease in order to understand the principles of disease transmission.

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapters 2 (pages 19- 20), 3 (pages 45-48), 27 & 28 (required)
• Optional Reading: Bandyopadhyay L., ‘Lymphatic Filariasis and the Women of India’. Special issue on ‘Women and Health Policy in Developing Countries’. Social Science and Medicine. May 1996, vol. 42, no. 10, 1401-1410.

• Videos:
  • Course Overview
  • Week 1 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: Introduce yourself.
• Discussion: Choose an infectious disease to research and write about.
• Parasitic Infectious Disease Transmission Report: Choose two diseases in which you explain disease transmission utilizing the epidemiological triangle, briefly describe the host, the agent and the environment of each of the two diseases, and discuss ways to reduce disease transmission based on the relationships inferred from the analysis.

 

Week 2: Disease Surveillance and Historical Perspective

Weekly Outcomes:

• Analyze the successes and challenges associated with the eradication of infectious diseases with a historical perspective.
• Explain the significance of a selected infectious disease in a particular geographic area.
• Evaluate significant findings from scientific literature and peer reviewed journals.
  

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapters 2 & 3 (pages 65-72) (required)
• Optional Reading Textbook: Chapter 1

Videos:

• Week 2 Lecture
  

Assignments:

• Discussion: This week you are to choose an infectious disease which is on the brink of eradication to research and discuss.
• Final Project Proposal and Review of Literature: This week, select the infectious disease for your final project. The assignment includes a proposal for your final project and a review of scientific literature and peer reviewed journals. This assignment is the foundation for one of the components of your final project submitted in Week 7, an introduction to the disease and the start of your research.

 

Week 3: Outbreak Investigation

Weekly Outcomes:

• Evaluate factors that influence outbreaks of infectious disease in order to determine the significance of each factor and how the factors promote the emergence or re-emergence of the disease.
• Explain the steps involved in conducting an investigation of the outbreak of an infectious disease.
• Create a disease outbreak investigation questionnaire to demonstrate an understanding of an infectious disease and the factors that lead to an outbreak.

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapters 5 & 13 (required)
• Website: CDC. Foodborne disease outbreak investigation and surveillance tools.
• Optional Reading: Textbook Chapter 25
• Optional Reading: Fielding J. Responding to the Next Ebola. http://www.usnews.com/opinion/policy-dose/articles/2016-11-29/after-ebola-4-ways-to-prepare-for-our-next-public-health-emergency.

Videos:

• Week 3 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: Consider factors that may influence the outbreak of infectious diseases.
• Outbreak Investigation Oral Presentation: Present a 4-minute talk to public health professionals and experts from the department of health at a conference in which you describe an outbreak investigation of a new or an emerging disease.
• Disease Outbreak Investigation Questionnaire: Consider the infectious disease you talked about for your oral presentation. Create a questionnaire that you would use during an outbreak investigation. Your questionnaire should have a clear purpose and demonstrate an understanding of the infectious disease and the factors that led to the outbreak.

 

Week 4: Healthcare Associated Infections

Weekly Outcomes:

• Evaluate why Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs) may be more rampant in some countries.
• Critique strategies for prevention and control of HAIs in different health care settings.
• Quantify rates of infections in healthcare settings.
• Evaluate measures of association for infectious disease occurrence.

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapter 14 (required)
• Optional Reading: Sydnor ERM, & Perl TM. Hospital epidemiology and infection control in acute-care settings. Clinical Microbiology Review. 2011; 24(1); 141-173. doi:  10.1128/CMR.00027-10.
• Optional Reading: World Health Organization’s summary report: The Burden of Health Care-Associated Infection Worldwide

Videos:

• Week 4 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: Describe the situation of Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) in a select country. Briefly describe why HAIs are so rampant in that country. Provide suggestions for improvement of HAIs in health care settings.
• Quiz: This quiz covers information from Weeks 1 through 4.
• Reminder: Final Project Research and Readings – Use this week to continue compiling your resources and work on your final project

 

Week 5: Natural History of Diseases and Risk Factors Associated with Infection and the Development of Diseases

Weekly Outcomes:

• Examine the risk factors associated with an infection and the development of an infectious disease.
• Describe the natural history of infectious disease in order to understand the pathogen, symptoms and modes of transmission.
  

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapters 2 (pages 29 –30) and 18 (required)
• Optional reading:
  • Textbook: Chapter 6 (pages 135-136) and Chapter 8
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Natural history and spectrum of disease. Principles of Epidemiology in Public Health Practice, Third Edition. 2012.
  • Seddon JA, Hesseling AC, Godfrey-Fausett P, Fielding K & Schaaf HS. 2013. Risk factors for infection and disease in child contacts of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: a cross-sectional study. BMC Infectious Diseases 2013,13:392. doi: 10.1186/1471-2334-13-392.    
    

Videos:

• Week 5 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: Describe the risk factors associated with an infection and/or the development of a select disease in a chosen geographic location. Highlight important risk factors associated with the infection and/or the development of the disease in that region.
• Assignment: Natural History of Disease and Risk Factors Report: This week, you are to research and write about the natural history of the disease you selected for your final project and its transmission and risk factors associated with the infection and the development of this disease. This week’s assignment requires you to provide a description of the natural history of the disease and discuss the risk factors associated with the infection and the development of this disease.

 

Week 6: Detection, Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases

Weekly Outcomes:

• Analyze the success of prevention and control programs for neglected tropical diseases in order to learn more about these types of diseases.
• Describe how an infectious disease is detected.
• Evaluate prevention and control measures used in order to determine which measures have been successful and suggest improvements to each.
  

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapter 4 (pages 77 – 84)  (required)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A CDC Framework for Preventing Infectious Diseases. 2011.   
• Optional reading:
  World Health Organization. Neglected Tropical Diseases. 2016. http://www.who.int/neglected_diseases/diseases/en/

Videos:

• Week 6 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: Choose a neglected tropical disease to research. Share at least two prevention and control programs for this disease that have been successful in a certain geographical region.
• Assignment: Detection, Prevention and Control of the Infectious Disease Report: This week, you are to research and write about the detection, prevention and control of the infectious disease that you have chosen for your final project.

 

Week 7: Sociocultural and Environmental Factors of Diseases

Weekly Outcomes:

• Describe sociocultural factors and environmental factors that affect the prevention and control of disease.
• Prepare an overview of an infectious disease and an assessment of its control programs through the synthesis of research that includes a historical perspective of the disease and any surveillance data, the natural history of the disease and a review of existing prevention and control programs including sociocultural aspects that may affect the success of these programs in a selected region.

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapter 4 (pages 85 – 97), Chapter 19 (Pages 575 – 584), Chapter 20 (Pages 623 – 627), and Chapter 24 (pages 800 – 803)  (required)
• Optional Reading
  • Farmer P. Social Inequalities and Emerging Infectious Diseases. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 1996;2(4):259-269. doi:10.3201/eid0204.960402.
  • Hotez PJ. Neglected Infections of Poverty in the United States of America. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 2008;2(6). doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0000256.
  • Mata L. Sociocultural Factors in the Control and Prevention of Parasitic Diseases. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 1982;4_4_:871-879. doi:10.1093/4.4.871.
  • Prüss-Üstün Annette, Corvalán C. Preventing Disease through Healthy Environments: towards an Estimate of the Environmental Burden of Disease. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2006.
  • Theobald S, Tolhurst R, Squire SB. Gender, equity: new approaches for effective management of communicable diseases. Transaction of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2006;100_4_:299-304. doi:10.1016/j.trstmh.2005.05.023.

Videos:

• Week 7 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: In this discussion you will choose an infectious disease which is affected by sociocultural factors to research and write about. You will briefly describe sociocultural factors that may affect the prevention and control of the disease. Describe in detail at least 2 such factors that may affect this disease.
• Final Project: An Overview of an Infectious Disease and an Assessment of its Control Programs Submission

 

Week 8: Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Weekly Outcomes:

• Explain how Geographic Information Systems will be applied in one’s career in public health.
• Summarize how you will use what you have learned about infectious disease epidemiology in your future.

Readings:

• Textbook: Chapter 7 (required)
• Optional reading:
  • Kloos H, Gazzinelli A, Zuyle PV. Microgeographical patterns of schistosomiasis and water contact behavior; examples from Africa and Brazil. Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. 1998;93. doi:10.1590/s0074-02761998000700006.

Videos:

• Week 8 Lecture

Assignments:

• Discussion: There will be TWO prompts to respond to this week. However, you do not have to write a response to colleagues this week. In your first response, consider what you learned about Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and how you would apply this in your future work. In your second response, share how you will apply what you learned in this course to your future.

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 Blackboard/Brightspace.
• Public Health Databases: https://library.une.edu/library-materials/find/research-by-subject/public-health/
• Library Tutorial: Find an article
• 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.

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 Turnitin Student quick start guide.

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.

Attendance Policy

Online students are required to submit a graded assignment/discussion prior to Sunday evening at 11:59 pm ET of the first week of the term. If a student does not submit a posting to the graded assignment/discussion prior to Sunday evening at 11:59 pm ET, the student will be automatically dropped from the course for non-participation. Review the full attendance policy.

Late Policy

Assignments: Late 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.

UNE Online 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 UNE Plagiarism Policies.

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.