Syllabus

Schedule

Course Calendar

Week 1:	Jan. 3 – Jan. 10
Week 2:	Jan. 10 – Jan. 17
Week 3:	Jan. 17 – Jan. 24
Week 4:	Jan. 24 – Jan. 31
Week 5:	Jan. 31 – Feb. 7
Week 6:	Feb. 7 – Feb. 14
Week 7:	Feb. 14 – Feb. 21
Week 8:	Feb. 21 – Feb. 25 (Sunday)

 

Weekly Schedule:

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 of New and Emerging Diseases

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: Infections in Healthcare Settings

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: Chapters 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 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

Passing Grade Statement

A grade of 80% or higher is required to pass the course. A grade lower than 80% will result in you having to repeat the course. Obtaining two "Fs" in the program will result in dismissal from the program.

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

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Statement

Learning to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) responsibly and ethically is an important skill in today’s society. AI is not a substitute for developing and enhancing skills in creativity, logic, critical thinking, analysis, evaluation, theorization, and writing essential to a public health professional. If you choose to use AI tools, such as ChatGPT and DALL-E2, they must be used wisely and intelligently to deepen your understanding of a subject matter and support learning. You are not allowed to use AI tools to generate your work. Content produced using AI tools cannot be used as a substitute for your original work.

Students in the Graduate Programs in Public Health (GPPH) must take ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of AI-generated content used in any work. You are expected to think critically about the results and alignment with the questions or tasks in the assignment and never substitute AI-generated results for professional human judgment and logic. GPPH students are also expected to understand that the information generated is not always accurate and, in some cases, propagates discrimination and bias. You must stay abreast of AI best practices, and the changing risks and benefits, and monitor AI for biases and risks for vulnerable populations and underrepresented groups.

Within GPPH, using AI-generated content in academic work falls under our academic integrity policies. All instructors will continue to use our AI detection software for each assignment submitted so it will be flagged.

Using any AI tool in your work must be acknowledged in-text every time it is used, not in your list of references. You will include a summary of what the AI tool was used to do, followed by the AI tool brand name, version/extension #, manufacturer/owner, and date used in parentheses.

For example, 

Themes from participant responses were identified using a chatbot session (ChatGPT, model GPT-4, OpenAI, May 17, 2024).

Failure to acknowledge the inclusion of AI-generated content in any work submitted violates our academic integrity policies and will be considered an infraction with the associated penalties for plagiarism as outlined in the Student Handbook.

The Student Orientation has a module "Artificial Intelligence Literacy for Students", please refer to this module for more information about navigating the use of AI.

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 Enrollment and Retention Counselor if you are considering dropping or withdrawing from a course. Tuition charges may still apply. Students are strongly urged to consult with Student Financial Services, as course withdrawals may affect financial aid or Veterans benefits.

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

6- to 8-week courses: Students taking online graduate courses through the College of Professional Studies will be administratively dropped for non-participation if a graded assignment/discussion post is not submitted before Sunday at 11:59 pm ET of the first week of the term. Reinstatement is at the purview of the Dean's Office.

10+ -week courses: Students taking online graduate courses through the College of Professional Studies will be administratively dropped for non-participation if a graded assignment/discussion post is not submitted before Friday at 11:59 pm ET of the second week of the term. Reinstatement is at the purview of the Dean's Office.

Student Handbook Online - Policies and Procedures

The policies contained within this document apply to all students in the College of 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 Enrollment and Retention Counselor if you are considering dropping or withdrawing from a course. Tuition charges may still apply. Students are strongly urged to consult with Student Financial Services, as course withdrawals may affect financial aid or Veterans benefits.

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.