Syllabus
Graduate Programs in Public Health
GPH 713: Infectious Disease Epidemiology – Spring 2021
Credits - 3
Description
Course Description:
This course is designed for students who would like build on the basic principles of epidemiology to study infectious diseases in populations. By the end of this course, students will be able to: 1) describe the general principles of infectious disease epidemiology, 2) analyze epidemiologic study designs and measures in the context of infectious diseases, 3) apply outbreak investigation steps to an infectious disease outbreak, 4) describe infectious disease dynamics, 5) apply principles of disease transmission to develop disease prevention and control practices, 6) design data collection tools to investigate an infectious disease outbreak using computer-based software, 7) Analyze quantitative data about infectious diseases using biostatistics, 8) Interpret results of data analysis of an infectious disease investigation, 9) communicate audience-appropriate content reporting on an infectious disease outbreak both in writing and through oral presentation, and 10) describe the use of system thinking tools in infectious disease epidemiology.
Pre-requisite:
GPH 712 Principles of Epidemiology
Materials
Learning Objectives and Outcomes
Course Outcomes
- Describe the general principles of infectious disease epidemiology
- Analyze epidemiologic study designs and measures in the context of infectious diseases
- Apply outbreak investigation steps to an infectious disease outbreak
- Describe infectious disease dynamics
- Apply principles of disease transmission to develop disease prevention and control practices
- Design data collection tools to investigate an infectious disease outbreak using computer-based software
- Analyze quantitative data about infectious diseases using biostatistics
- Interpret results of data analysis in the context of infectious diseases
- Communicate audience-appropriate content reporting on an infectious disease through oral presentation
- Apply a systems thinking tool to analysis of an infectious disease within a system
Public Health Competencies
- FC 1: Apply epidemiological methods to the breadth of settings and situations in public health practice
- FC 2: Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context
- FC 3: Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming and software, as appropriate
- FC 4: Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice
- FC 19: Communicate audience-appropriate public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation
- FC 22: Apply systems thinking tools to a public health issue
Assignments
Forum Discussions: Each student is expected to post at least twice each week in response to forum questions on that week’s topic. Initial posts are due by 11:59pm ET on Sunday. Your response must be completed by 11:59pm ET Wednesday for credit. Because this is an online course, the online discussion portion is an important way to exchange ideas with your classmates. Students will be graded on their participation and effort of their posts. These posts will take time to complete but they are an essential part of this on-line course and a great way to get to know your colleagues. Please be familiar with the course material (readings/lectures) before posting each week. Full marks will be given to those who ask questions, bring in new data from the literature or other resources, and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the topics for the week.
Some discussions will require two posts, and some will require three. Please pay attention to the instructions of any prompt to avoid any confusion.
Interpreting Key Measures of Infectious Diseases – Week 2
Report on the measures of association for an infectious disease that has not yet been eradicated and for which there is no vaccine. Requires at least two peer-reviewed publications.
Outbreak Investigation – Week 3
Respond in stages to a simulated disease outbreak investigation. You will not be able to see the prompts for the entire assignment at once; instead, additional stages will reveal themselves as you submit your responses to preceding stages.
Week 5 and 6 Oral Presentations
Each presentation will put you in the position of communicating subject-specific information to a target audience. The audience for the first presentation is the general public, and the form of the presentation is a PSA, so you will need to communicate the information you are presenting in such a way that people from a wide variety of backgrounds will understand it. The second oral presentation is toward clinicians, in the form of an educational video for a technical audience, and so should be presented as though to an audience with a great deal of experience already in your field.
Design Data Collection Tool for Infectious Disease Investigations
You will generate an online questionnaire and database using the software RedCap (see Week 2, “Thinking ahead” for instructions on how to obtain a RedCap account). For this questionnaire, imagine you are an infectious disease epidemiologist and you have confirmed an outbreak in your region. You have verified the diagnosis, and will need to select a study design and then design a questionnaire to collect risk information.
Week 4 and Week 7 Quizzes: These quizzes cover information from Weeks 1 through 4 and Week 5 through 7, respectively. The quizzes will be taken in Blackboard and you will have a single attempt for each of them. They will not be available to take after the week in which they are due passes.
Grading Policy
Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:
Grade Breakdown
| Assignments | Total: 100 Points |
|---|---|
| Discussion Posts (2 x 4 points and 3 x 6 points) | 26 |
| Written Assignment: Interpreting Key Measures of Infectious Disease | 10 |
| Outbreak Investigation | 14 |
| Oral Presentations (2 x 10) | 20 |
| Data Collection Tool Assignment | 10 |
| Quizzes (2 x 10 points) | 20 |
| Total | 100 |
Grade Scale
| Grade | Points Grade | Point Average (GPA) |
| A | 94 – 100% | 4.00 |
| A- | 90 – 93% | 3.75 |
| B+ | 87 – 89% | 3.50 |
| B | 84 – 86% | 3.00 |
| B- | 80 – 83% | 2.75 |
| C+ | 77 – 79% | 2.50 |
| C | 74 – 76% | 2.00 |
| C- | 70 – 73% | 1.75 |
| D | 64 – 69% | 1.00 |
| F | 00 – 63% | 0.00 |
Schedule
Course Calendar
| Week 1: | Mar 3 – Mar 10 |
| Week 2: | Mar 10 – Mar 17 |
| Week 3: | Mar 17 – Mar 24 |
| Week 4: | Mar 24 – Mar 31 |
| Week 5: | Mar 31 – Apr 7 |
| Week 6: | Apr 7 – Apr 14 |
| Week 7: | Apr 14 – Apr 21 |
| Week 8: | Apr 21 – Apr 25 (Sunday) |
Week 1: General Principles of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Weekly Outcomes
- Discuss infectious disease classification systems
- Describe disease transmission
- Describe the biological characteristics of infectious disease organisms
- Describe the natural history of infectious diseases
- Describe the relationship between incidence and prevalence
Readings
- Textbook: Chapter 2 – Epidemiology of Infectious Disease: General Principles
Videos
- Week 1 Lecture Part 1 – Introduction to GPH 713, Infectious Disease Epidemiology
- Week 1 Lecture Part 2 – General Principles of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Assignments
- Introduction Discussion
- Week 1 Discussion – Classifying an Infectious Disease
Week 2: Epidemiological Study Design and Key Measures for Infectious Diseases
Weekly Outcomes
- Apply epidemiological triangle in analysis of an infectious disease
- Describe epidemiological study designs in the context of infectious diseases
- Explain key measures of infectious disease
- Interpret measures of association for infectious disease studies
Readings
- Textbook: Chapter 3 – Study Design
Videos
- Week 2 Lecture: Epidemiological Study Design and Key Measures for Infectious Diseases
Assignments
- Week 2 Discussion – Epidemiological Triangle
- Week 2 Written Assignment – Interpreting Key Measures of Infectious Disease
Week 3: Outbreak Investigations
Weekly Outcomes
- Evaluate the results of an outbreak investigation
- Analyze the steps involved in conducting an investigation of the outbreak of an infectious disease
- Conduct an outbreak investigation
Readings
- Textbook: Chapter 5 – Outbreak Epidemiology
Videos
- Week 3 Lecture: Outbreak Investigations
Assignments
- Outbreak Investigation
Week 4: Infectious Disease Dynamics
Weekly Outcomes
- Describe the determinants of epidemic growth
- Interpret an epidemic growth curve
- Describe the differences between incubation, latent and infectious periods
Readings
- Textbook: Chapter 6 – Infectious Disease Dynamics
- Optional: Re-read pages 119-120 describing epidemic curves
Videos
- Week 4 Lecture: Infectious Disease Dynamics
Assignments
- Quiz 1
Week 5: Prevention and Control Measures
Weekly Outcomes
- Describe individual- and community-level disease control practices
- Describe the role of vaccination in disease control and prevention
- Describe the disease prevention and control practices for healthcare-acquired infections
- Apply knowledge of the principles of disease transmission to recommend disease prevention and control practices
- Compose an oral presentation for a public audience
Readings
- Textbook: Chapter 4 – Prevention of Infectious Diseases
- Textbook: Chapter 11 – Vaccines: Past, Present and Future (only pages 273-282 are required)
- Textbook: Chapter 14 – Healthcare-Associated Infections
Videos
- Week 5 Lecture: Preventing and Controlling Infectious Diseases
Assignments
- Week 5 Discussion – HAIs Scenario
- Oral Presentation 1 – Public Service Announcement to Prevent Spread of an Infectious Disease
Week 6: Identifying and Analyzing Infectious Disease Data
Weekly Outcomes
- Identify infectious disease data
- Analyze infectious disease data
- Calculate sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value in the context of infectious disease diagnostic tests
- Interpret results of analysis of infectious disease data
- Interpret sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value in the context of infectious disease diagnostic tests
- Compose an oral presentation for a technical audience
Readings
- Readers’ Guide: Understanding Weekly and Annual National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System WONDER Tables
- Optional: If you are interested in the molecular biology behind diagnostic tests for infectious disease, read Chapter 9
Videos
- Week 6 Lecture: Identifying and Analyzing Infectious Disease Data
- Sensitivity, Specificity, PPV and NPV
Assignments
- Week 6 Discussion – Notifiable Conditions
- Oral Presentation 2 – Creating an Educational Video for a Technical Audience
Week 7: Designing Data Collection Tools for Infectious Disease Investigations
Weekly Outcomes
- Design a questionnaire to collect infectious disease risk information using RedCap
- Design a database to house infectious disease risk information collected using RedCap
Readings
- Optional: Re-read pages 174-177 in the text (“Collecting Risk Information”).
Videos
- Week 7 Lecture: Collecting Risk Information for Infectious Disease Investigations
- Detailed Overview of RedCap
- Basic Features and Functionality of RedCap (5 videos)
- Single Survey Project
Assignments
- Designing Data Collection Tools for Infectious Disease Investigations
- Quiz 2
Week 8: Systems Thinking and Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Weekly Outcomes
- Describe systems thinking in the context of infectious disease epidemiology
- Use a systems thinking tool to visualize an infectious disease within a system
Readings
- Peters, DH. The application of systems thinking in health: why use systems thinking? Health Res Policy Syst. 2014:12(15).
Assignments
Week 8 Discussion – Systems Thinking Methods
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:
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.
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:
- Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
- Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
- Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
- Multiple submissions of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
- 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.