This version of the course guide is provisional until the period for editing the new course guides ends.

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Public Health

Code: 106119 ECTS Credits: 6
2024/2025
Degree Type Year
2500891 Nursing OB 2

Contact

Name:
Maria Isabel Fernandez Cano
Email:
mariaisabel.fernandezc@uab.cat

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

There are no official prerequisites.


Objectives and Contextualisation

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

To acquire competences to intervene in the areas of Health promotion, prevention, protection and recovery from the nurse practice’s approach.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

  • Describe the health-illness process.
  • Explain the natural history of the disease (prepatoghenic, pathogenic and resolution period).
  • Analyze the determinants of human health: biological, psychological, social and cultural, throughout the whole life.
  • Analyze health inequalities according to the main axes of inequality (gender, social class, race and territory)
  • Know the structure and size of the population served.
  • Know the main sources of health information.
  • Interpret and use the main epidemiological measures to assess the state of health of the population or assess the impact of interventions.
  • Identify the most relevant risk factors and behaviors that condition people’s health.
  • Describe the main measures of protection, prevention and promotion of health.
  • Recognize the characteristics of different health systems.
  • Describe the characteristics and organization of the Spanish and the Catalan Health System (levels of care).
  • Analyse the relationship between health and work.
  • Identify strategies to detect and prevent gender-based violence.

Competences

  • Base nursing interventions on scientific evidence and the available media.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of health information systems.
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the principles of health financing and social health and proper use of available resources.
  • Demonstrate that the interactive behaviour of the person is understood according to their gender, social group or community, within a social and multicultural context.
  • Make changes to methods and processes in the area of knowledge in order to provide innovative responses to society's needs and demands.
  • Promote healthy life styles, self-treatment, giving support to the maintenance of preventative and therapeutic conducts.
  • Protect the health and welfare of people or groups attended guaranteeing their safety.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Acquire and use the necessary instruments for developing a critical and reflective attitude.
  2. Analyse differences by sex and gender inequality in ethiology, anatomy, physiology. Pathologies, differential diagnosis, therapeutic options, pharmacological response, prognosis and nursing care.
  3. Analyse the situation and identify the points that are best adapted to the needs and demands of the context of analysis.
  4. Analyse the statistical data that refer to populational studies identifying the possible causes of health problems.
  5. Critically analyse the usefulness of the different systems of healthcare information.
  6. Describe the different models of health systems.
  7. Describe the indicators that allow an understanding and control of the state of health of a population and the indicators that evaluate the effectiveness of the healthcare systems.
  8. Identify risk factors in the health-illness process on a physical, emotional, social and environmental level.
  9. Identify strategies to prevent gender violence.
  10. Identify the factors that determine health and the problems related to surroundings to be able to offer care to people with different situations of health and illness as members of a community.
  11. Identify the influence of physical, chemical and biological agents on the health of people to ensure their safety.
  12. Identify the intersection between gender inequality and other types of inequality (age, class, race, ethnic group, sexuality and identity/expression, functional diversity, etc.)
  13. Recognise risk-free ways of disposing of different health substances and products.
  14. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.

Content

Public Health is the discipline that safeguards the health and well-being of the entire population through individual or collective interventions regarding health prevention, promotion and protection.

1. INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HEALTH

  • Concept of Health-Disease.
  • Natural history of the disease.
  • Classic determinants of health.
  • Concept of Public Health.
  • Functions and activities of Public Health
    • Monitoring and Surveillance
    • Prevention, protection and health promotion

2. SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH

  • Social epidemiology:
    • Conceptual framework
    • Lifestyles
    • Living conditions
  • Health inequalities
    • Conceptual framework
    • Axes of inequality: Gender, Social class, Race/Ethnicity, Territory.
  • Government actions. 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

3. MEASUREMENT OF HEALTH AND DISEASE PHENOMENA

  • Epidemiology: concept, historical evolution.
  • Measures of frequency
  • Measures of association
  • Measures of impact

4. DEMOGRAPHY AND PUBLIC HEALTH

  • Static demography: Population size and structure. Demographic indicators.
  • Dynamic demography: Mortality, Birth and Fertility, Migratory movements.

5. HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS

  • Sources of health information: Population base, Health services.
  • Collection methods: Records, Surveys, Notification Systems.

6. HEALTH SYSTEMS

  • Concept, objectives, functions and agents. Main models of organization. Problems and challenges.
  • Health System of Spain: Historical evolution. Organization and financing. Coverage, service portfolio and service providers. Health expenditure and health outcomes. Patient experience.
  • Health System of Catalonia: Organization, Health Plan and health results.

7. OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

  • Work-health relationship.
  • Working conditions: Safety, Hygiene, Ergonomics and Psychosociology.
  • Conditions of occupation: Job insecurity and health.
  • Occupational Risk Prevention:
    • The Legal Framework
    • Damage to health: accidents, occupational diseases, non-traumatic work-related diseases.
    • Occupational risks in the health field and prevention strategies.
    • Risk-free disposal of medical waste.

8. EPIDEMIOLOGY OF MAJOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROBLEMS

  • Communicable diseases. Risk factors. prevention and control measures.
  • Non-communicable diseases. Risk factors. Prevention and control measures.

 


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
SPECIALIZED SEMINARS (SESP) 20 0.8
THEORY (TE) 30 1.2
Type: Autonomous      
PERSONAL STUDY 91 3.64

The teaching methodology will be mixed.

Theory (TE)

Planned sessions with the whole group. Different teaching strategies will be used: lectures given by the teacher with practical exercises and reflection.

Specializes seminars (SESP)

They will be carried out in small groups of stable students during all sessions (approximately 4-5 students) in person and guided by a tutor.
Four situations/problems linked to the contents of the subject will be worked on that will allow students to acquire skills to analyse problems, prioritise and search for information, make decisions and evaluate their activity.

Each situation will be worked on in 5 face-to-face hours in class divided into two sessions:

  • In the first work session (3 hours):
    • The general situation/problem will be presented and each subgroup will work on a different aspect of the health problem.
    • The subgroups will work autonomously and will propose an analysis and list of questions about the situation, work plan and sources of information.
    • Documents that answer the questions and support the latest evidence on the situation/problem (clinical practice guidelines, research articles, etc.) will be selected.
    • The teaching staff will supervise the work in general and in each group, resolving doubts and making suggestions.
    • Each group will prepare a summary with the main concepts and present the documents with the most current evidence.

  • In the second evaluation session (2 hours):

    • The work prepared will be presented in class with audiovisual supportand this presentation will be delivered in Moodle as evidence of the work done. They will answer questions posed by the teaching staff and the rest of the students.

Tutorials can be arranged with the coordinator in charge by contacting previously by email.

Note: 15 minutes of a class will be reserved, within the calendar established by the centre/degree, for students to complete the surveys to evaluate the performance of the teaching staff and to evaluate the subject.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Evaluation of the seminars through case studies and problem solving 50% 5 0.2 1, 5, 4, 2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 10, 8, 9, 12, 14, 13
Written evaluation through objective tests (Midterm Exam 1) 25% 2 0.08 1, 5, 4, 2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 10, 8, 12, 14, 13
Written evaluation through objective tests (Midterm Exam 2) 25% 2 0.08 1, 5, 4, 2, 3, 6, 7, 11, 10, 8, 12, 14, 13 

This subject does not consider single assessment.

The evaluation of the subject includes 3 evaluation moments with 2 different evaluation methods with the following weighting:
  • Individual evaluation. 50% of the final grade will be obtained from the average of the individual evaluation of the written assessment through two objective tests to assess the acquisition of knowledge from the theoretical sessions of the subject. There will be two midterm tests with multiple-choice questions with 4 answer options, of which only one is the correct answer). Blank answers do not deduct points and each wrong answer will deduct 0.33 points. The contents of the subject are organized in two blocks and at the end of each block the corresponding midterm test will be taken. The dates of the two tests have been included in the subject calendar
    • Midterm Exam 1: weight of 25% of the final grade of the subject. Programming at the end of October 2024.
    • Midterm Exam 2: weight of 25% of the final grade of the subject. Programming at the end of January 2025.
  • Group evaluation. 50% of the final grade will be obtained from the average of the evaluation of the group work of the 4 situations to be worked on in the specialized seminars.  An evaluation rubric will be used with criteria related to the quality of the presentation, the sources of information used and the evidence provided in each situation/problem to be worked on.

 Obtaining the final grade: 

The overall grade for the course is obtained from the sum of the weighted scores of the different evaluation items (individual and group).

To pass the subject, the mark of the individual evaluation through objective tests to assess the acquisition of knowledge of the subject must be equal to or greater than 5 points, on a scale of 1 to 10.

Students who do not take the individual assessment tests of content knowledge and who do not participate in the 4 sessions of presentation of the work of the specialized seminars, exhausting the rights to the enrollment of the subject, will be considered as NOT ASSESSABLE.

According to agreement 4.4 of the Consell de Govern 11/17/2010 of the evaluation regulations, the grades will be:

  • 0 to 4.9 = Suspense
  • 5.0 to 6.9 = Pass
  • From 7.0 to 8.9 = Notable
  • From 9.0 to 10 = Excellent

The student has the right to review the evaluation tests,for this the date will be specified on the virtual campus.

Retake exam

The student who does not pass the subject with the continuous evaluation may take a retake test scheduled forthis purpose in the exams calendar. The condition to be able to do the retake exam is:

• Have previously participated in assessment activities, the weight of which is equivalent to two thirds of the total grade of the subject (according to the UAB Assessment       Regulations).
• To have obtained a minimum grade in the average of the subject of 3.5 points out of 10.

The retake test will include the same content as the assessment test not previously passed (Individual assessment: midterm test 1 and/or midterm test 2; Group evaluation: situations/problems worked on in the specialized seminars).

The option of taking this retake test to improve the grade obtained isnot contemplated.


Bibliography

 

Specific bibliography:

 

  • Argimon, JM., Jiménez Villa, J. Métodos de investigación clínica y epidemiología. 5a ed. Barcelona: Elsevier;2019. (Paper i digital)
  • Celentano, David D. Gordis. Epidemiología. 6a ed. España:Elsevier; 2020. (Paper i digital)
  • Gencat. Pla de salut de Catalunya 2021-2025. Barcelona: Direcció General de Planifcació en Salut; 2021. Disponible en: https://scientiasalut.gencat.cat/handle/11351/7948
  • Hernández-Aguado, I. et al. Manual de epidemiología y salud pública: para grados en ciencias de la salud. 2ª ed., Madrid: Médica Panamericana; 2018. (Digital)
  • Last, JM. A Dictionary of epidemiology / edited for the International Epidemiological Association by Miquel Porta.Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. (Paper i digital)
  • Martín Zurro, A. et al. Atención Primaria. Conceptos organización y práctica clínica. 7 ª ed. Barcelona: Doyma; 2014.
  • Martínez González, MA. Conceptos de Salud Pública y estrategias preventivas. 2ª ed., Barcelona: Elsevier; 2018. (Paper i digital) 
  • Martínez Ortega, RM. Atención y cuidados profesionales a mujeres víctimas de violencia de género. 1a ed., Madrid: Funden; 2019 (Paper
  • Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social. Crisis económica y salud en España. 2019. Available in: https://www.mscbs.gob.es/estadEstudios/estadisticas/docs/CRISIS_ECONOMICA_Y_SALUD.pdf
  • OMS. Conferencia Internacional sobre Promoción de la Salud. Carta de Ottawa para la promoción de la salud. Revista de Sanidade Higiene Pública. 1987; 61:129-133.
  • Perea Quesada, R. Promoción y educación para la Salud. Madrid: Díaz de Santos; 2009.
  • Piedrola Gil. Medicina preventiva y salud pública. 12ª ed. Barcelona: Elsevier Masson; 2016. (Paper i digital)

 

Internet resources:

 

 


Software

No specific software are required.


Language list

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(SEM) Seminars 101 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 102 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 103 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 104 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 105 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 106 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 107 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 108 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(SEM) Seminars 109 Catalan first semester afternoon
(SEM) Seminars 110 Catalan first semester afternoon
(TE) Theory 101 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 102 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 103 Catalan first semester afternoon