IUPUI Campus Bulletin 2019-2020

The environment influences many aspects of human health and well-being. Many diseases are initiated, promoted, sustained, or stimulated by environmental factors. For these reasons, the interactions people have with their environments are an important component of public health. Environmental health focuses on the relationship between the environment and human health.

Air pollution and health provides an overview and foundation in the science and management of air quality with a focus on health impacts and strategies to reduce these impacts.  Our focus is on the scientific technical aspects of air pollution through the study of the characteristics of the atmosphere and atmospheric pollutants, effects of meteorology on air pollution, urban air pollution, visibility, smog, acid deposition, stratospheric ozone depletion, global warming and indoor air pollution.

This course is designed to teach public health students the fundamentals of water quality and treatment of water, wastewater and solid waste along with associated aspects of the water cycle, ecosystems, water resources and regulations.

This course covers the major developments in the history of epidemiology. The course is not meant to be comprehensive, but rather to provide an opportunity to follow the development of the discipline. You will be required to read 5-7 seminal articles each week and be prepared to discuss them in class. Due to the shortened nature of the summer semester, you must read the first week's material before the class has started. All of the articles have been scanned and placed in Oncourse under the resource tab. Copies of the powerpoint presentations to help direct your readings also have been provided. We will be discussing the first weeks articles the first night so you must read them prior to class time. In order to focus your reading and discussion, there are several questions posed for each week's readings; you should be familiar with the major contribution of each article or historical figure. You should familiarize yourself with the context of their work - you should know what the purpose of their work was, external drivers that either facilitated or hindered their research, underlying political pressures, and assess the utility of their research in regards to how the field is practiced today.

Explores concepts to integrate the expertise and efforts of health protection professionals into a broader organization/workplace to influence strategy and create impact.  We will examine discipline-specific elements of management systems, establish professional skills, and navigate work situations and effective communication strategies for health protection.

Each year, thousands of workers throughout the world are killed, injured, or otherwise adversely affected by chemical, biological, and/or physical, agents encountered in the workplace. Common hazards include dusts, gases and vapors, bio-aerosols, pathogens, noise, and ionizing and non-ionizing radiation. Ergonomic stresses and safety hazards are also important causes of workplace morbidity and mortality. The goal of this course is to educate individuals to anticipate, recognize, evaluate, control, and manage such workplace health risks.

This course is a survey of the technical and regulatory aspects of protecting the health and safety of workers. Topics include basic toxicology; skin, eye, and respiratory hazards; measuring hazardous atmospheres; ventilation systems; fire and explosion hazards; emergency response; noise-induced hearing loss in the workplace; radiation; accident prevention; cumulative trauma; and personal protective equipment. The course provides students with an introduction to the principles and practice of industrial hygiene. Industrial hygiene is concerned with the anticipation, recognition, evaluation and control of environmental and occupational factors that pose hazards to health and safety in the workplace.  These aspects parallel the basic components of risk assessment: hazard identification, dose-response determination, exposure assessment, risk assessment, and risk management. Greater attention is focused on anticipation, recognition, and evaluation, but some consideration of control methods and hazard communication will also be included.  These functions all require a sound understanding of basic toxicology, procedures for investigation, methods of exposure measurement and assessment, behavior of chemical and physical agents in the environment, and the application of guidelines and standards, topics which form the primary elements of the course.

Human Health Risk Assessment is the basis for making decisions related to human health. This course will examine the basic principles and methods of conducting human health risk assessments and how risk is managed and communicated to the public. Applications emphasizing real scenario will be used to illustrate the interdisciplinary process and products of risk assessment, as well as the regulatory use of the information.

This course presents integrated product stewardship and business strategy framework, interacting with leadership at all levels throughout the organization. It explores how businesses set and attain overarching goals by integrating risk assessments, regulatory, and other considerations. Responsibility and performance required of product stewardship programs and the expectations of product stewardship professionals is emphasized.

Examines product hazards against probable and misuse exposure scenarios that translate into a risk assessment. Explores a framework to asses risk throughout the product supply chain to determine and document appropriate and effective systems for ongoing assessment and management of product and business risk.

Presents best practices in product design, focusing on materials selection, packaging and sustainability.  Examines alternatives in the product development cycle where improvement opportunities exist to reduce potential impact on human and environmental health while providing comparable or superior efficacy, and competitive advantage to business.  Explore sustainability concepts and their impact on product development and design.

Introduction to regulatory, customer, and societal issues that affect consumer and intermediate products and how to incorporate solutions into business strategy using appropriate tools, concepts, and systems.  Examines the product supply chain, from the sourcing of raw materials, manufacturing of materials into products, transportation, retail, and use, to their end-of-life.

P: PBHL- B 551 This course introduces some basic designs of experiment and analysis tools for outcome data of continuous variable, such as Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Analysis of Covariance and Linear Regression Analysis. SAS programming language will be the primary statistical analytical tool for the course. Throughout the semester, applications of these statistical methods on biomedical studies will be emphasized with focus on modeling data and interpreting analytical results.

P: PBHL- B 551 This course covers applied statistical methods for the analysis of categorical data with special emphasis on data collected from epidemiologic studies and general biomedical studies. The topics delivered in this course will focus on methods of categorical analysis commonly used in practice of health sciences. The course will be taught in two parts: the relevant theory and methods will be presented in lecture sessions and the hands-on analysis of real-life problems using the SAS statistical software package will be practiced in laboratory sessions.

This class will cover statistical methods used for analyzing correlated data including longitudinally collected data. Students are expected to have knowledge of probability theory on basic estimation and inference procedures and linear regression models. Topics include linear mixed effect models, generalized linear models, maximum likelihood and related estimation, generalized estimating equations (GEE) and missing data in longitudinal studies. The software SAS will be used to demonstrate analysis procedures.

Research required by the graduate students for the sole purpose of writing a PhD Dissertation.

(Source: Course Catalog)

This course will provide an introduction to the public health concentration Health Policy and Management. This online course begins with a broad overview of public health. Additional modules will be completed that illustrate key concepts in health policy.

This course provides an applied practice experience in which students integrate concepts from core and concentration courses, conduct projects, solve problems, gain valuable work experience, and interact with professionals in public health informatics.  The student works with the faculty advisor and an academically and professionally qualified preceptor in the agency.

A combination of experiential (learn by doing) and lecture formatted learning aimed at introducing students to the concept of Lean thinking and leadership in healthcare organizations. Within the course students will be introduced to: the history of Lean and its rise in healthcare, identification and quantification of the value of waste removal in process oriented work systems, Lean thinking, facilitation, tools and leadership.  Students will work independently and in small groups.

This course examines the marketing function and the marketing mix; philosophy and principles behind a marketing-driven health service organization; the dynamic healthcare environment; healthcare consumers; marketing research; the promotional mix; and the role marketing management plays in today’s health service organization.

Known as the “Capstone” Course, a final semester course in the MHA Program that utilizes the Capstone Project as the central component of learning for the course. The Capstone Project is a healthcare service organization - sponsored project of significant importance to the sponsor as well as demanding of the student to apply knowledge and skills to a real administrative issue.  The Project requires students to utilize a variety of skills including interpersonal, conceptual, critical thinking, report & executive writing, oral presentation, coordination and organization to satisfactorily fulfill the Capstone Project requirements.  Guest lecturers in healthcare executive roles are invited to share administrative and leadership challenges, strategic management issues and experiences, and operating challenges from the health services field.  Guest lecturers provide valuable insight to facilitate the transition from the academic setting to the health care industry work place.  The class will also emphasize the development of personal leadership philosophies and principles.  The development of a personal set of leadership philosophies and principles is designed to help prepare the students for early career success and to set a foundation for professional growth and development. 

This course aims to develop the student’s knowledge and ability in strategic management in health services organizations. Based on an introduction to the general process model of strategic management, the course will engage in detailed discussions of a series of topics
in strategic management. These topics include the identification of the organization’s mission, vision, and values, the analysis of the external and internal environment of the organization, the identification of strategic challenges and opportunities, the development of strategies, the evaluation of strategies, the communication of strategies, and the development and evaluation of an action plan.

The course emphasizes the unique strategic challenges facing health services organizations and their leadership, and aims to develop accordingly the student’s ability to identify, analyze and address these challenges.

The course utilizes lectures, group discussion, and real-life case studies to facilitate the understanding of basic course content and the conceptual model of strategic management.  Students will also be required to analyze a strategic case and apply the conceptual
strategic planning process.

This course introduces the management of healthcare information systems. Topics include analyzing system requirements, system design and evaluation, selecting computer resources, and managing the implementation process.

Public health law is law that affects the health conditions of populations. In the United States, this contrasts with medical law or general health law, which focus more on the health-care delivery system and physician-patient relationships.

This course is an introduction to the role of ethics in population health-related programs, policymaking, professions and research.

This course Introduces students to the methods and tools of health policy research. It covers various study designs, data collection methods, and data analysis techniques. It facilitates the development and execution of student’s final concentration project.

This course explores the discipline of management, its major components and functions, with a focus on executive leadership of public and private health service organizations. This course will provide students with a foundation of basic management and leadership theory as well as fundamentals, principles, philosophies, methods and techniques for effective leadership which have particular relevance and application in healthcare.

Population health is the distribution of health outcomes within a population, the health determinants that influence distribution, and the policies and interventions that affect the determinants. The management of the health of a population requires attention to the multiple determinants of health including: medical care, public health, and the environment. As a key component of population health, this course provides a broad introduction to the principles and organization of public health.

This course focuses on quantitative research methods applied to healthcare finance.  The goal is to equip students with a solid methodological basis for research design and secondary data analysis. The course presents different methodological applications using a combination of readings and problem sets that cover a selection of topics in healthcare finance.

The capstone project, or integrated learning experience (ILE), represents the culminating experience in the MPH Program.  Students’ ILE must demonstrate synthesis of foundational and concentration competencies in public health informatics. In consultation with their faculty advisor, students select foundational and concentration-specific competencies appropriate to their educational and professional goals.

Critical examination of current issues in global health systems prepares students to confront organizational and policy challenges. Examine trends in global health reforms and governing structures. Explore leadership expectations of diverse stakeholders, inside and outside government, and how they may be met with critical thinking, analysis and application.

This course critically examines current issues in global health systems and prepares students to confront organizational and policy challenges. Health leadership here covers the entire “value chain” from the inception of public health policies to health services delivery.  Health leadership is therefore examined in terms of a comprehensive world view of public health issues and options. The course looks at health systems in selected countries outside the U.S. including examples in high-, middle- and low-income countries. We will examine trends in global health reforms and their governing structures. Health leadership, in the context of a professional career or an altruistic mission, requires knowledge, skills and commitment. The course will look at how leadership expectations are voiced by a diversity of stakeholders, inside and outside institutions, and how they may be met with critical thinking, analysis and application.

Review basic research techniques used in health services research, including qualitative and quantitative methods.  Special emphasis is placed on applying these skills in “real world” settings where data may not be perfect and conditions may make it necessary to compromise in applying research techniques used in more controlled settings.

We review basic research techniques used in health services research, including qualitative and quantitative methods.  Special emphasis is placed on applying these skills in “real world” settings where data may not be perfect and conditions may make it necessary to compromise in applying research techniques used in more controlled settings. The course prepares students to move from research question to preliminary ideas about research methods that would be appropriately applied in their dissertations. The course covers basic research designs, measurement scales and coding nomenclatures, analytical techniques for qualitative data, research techniques for primary data collection and use of secondary data. Emphasis is placed on qualitative methods in this course. Given the nature of the dissertations completed in this program, the vast majority of students will use primarily qualitative methods in executive of their research. 

This course introduces methods for identifying, exploring and evaluating literature relevant to students’ proposed dissertation topics in a scholarly and systematic way. The course also prepares students to effectively review research for decision-making and other applications in their roles as senior leaders in organizations.  

This course provides students with an introduction to the topic of implementation science including immediately applicable problem solving and analytical skills relevant to those working in global public health settings. The course introduces a suite of tools for each step of the implementation framework, allowing students to understand the suitability of different tools for different applications. 

The primary objective of this course is to provide students with an introduction to the topic of implementation science including immediately applicable problem solving and analytical skills relevant to those working in global public health settings.. Reflecting the trans-disciplinary nature of global health, the course draws on and integrates qualitative and quantitative tools from a broad array of fields. For example, tools for understanding local contexts, needs and activities have been developed in the social sciences (ethnography), engineering design (contextual inquiry), business (Voice of the Customer)  and organizational behavior (appreciative inquiry). The course introduces a suite of tools for each step of the implementation framework, allowing students to understand the  suitability of different tools for different applications. 

This course provides students with insights into timely issues relating to global health informatics.  The course helps students understand current global challenges and opportunities in health informatics and equips them with the skills and knowledge they need to effectively identify and address information needs in organizations. 

This course provides students with insights into timely issues relating to global health informatics.  The course helps students understand current global challenges and opportunities in health informatics and equips them with the skills and knowledge they need to effectively identify and address information needs in organizations.   Health informatics initiatives have implications for stakeholders such as consumers, patients, practitioners, administrators, and policy makers. Students will consider informatics initiatives from varied stakeholder perspectives and evaluate them in the context of organizational strategies and operations. 

The course will focus on how development assistance for health (DAH) is changing and implications for the public’s health. Students will discuss global health related financial goals and priorities.  They will become acquainted with principles of political economy and the structures and governance of financing institutions related to DAH worldwide.

Global health is the defined as the health of populations in the global context. It pertains to worldwide health improvement, reduction of disparities, and protection against global threats that disregard national borders.  Every year, development assistance for health (DAH) is provided to lower and middle income countries.  In 2013 the amount was estimated to have been the equivalent of USD 31.1 billion (IHME)[1]. Global health leaders must understand where and how these funds originate and how they are being spent.  The course will focus on current day discourse about the way DAH is changing and implications for the public’s health.  Dominated in the past by bi-lateral agreements and the UN system (WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA), non-state and non-UN actors are now taking on greater prominence[2].  This development creates challenges for securing long-term solutions to global health challenges.  Controversies include, for example, ethical and legal considerations when NGOs and other independent institutions/corporations leverage DAH contributions in their tax expenditure strategies. Students will familiarize themselves with issues surrounding finance and global health goals and priorities.  Students will become acquainted with principles of political economy and the structures and governance of financing institutions related to DAH worldwide.

[1] Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

[2] Some of the major ones are The Global Fund, GAVI Alliance, World Bank, Gates Foundation and non-governmental organizations (NGO´s).

Communication within the field of health services and global public health requires special knowledge, abilities and skills. Executives must understand the value and role of organizational communication teams that manage and direct internal and external communication efforts. In addition, executives work with expert communicators to respond effectively during times of crisis. Media for communication include traditional outlets as well as new and emerging electronic media. Sensitivity to timing, context, culture, and best practices can maximize the effectiveness of executive communication within and outside their own organizations. This course introduces topics in executive communication necessary for senior leaders to be effective. 

Review frameworks for global policy processes then take an in-depth look at one approach and its basic steps, applying it to select cases. The course considers key concepts in development of an advocacy agenda using strategies tailored to the policy environment and designed to move policies in the desired direction.

Health policymaking is a complex process that varies around the world. It is affected by such factors as governance structures and systems, the relative influence of stakeholder groups, and the policy context including political, economic, social and organizational conditions. Making sense of the complex interplay of these elements requires skill, and there is no single correct way to approach such an analysis. In this course, we briefly review theories and frameworks for the policy process then take an in-depth look at one approach and its basic steps, applying them to select cases. The course concludes by considering key concepts in development of an advocacy agenda using strategies tailored to the particular policy environment and designed to move policies in the desired direction. 

This course focuses on theories and principles of strategic leadership of organizations with a mandate to provide health care services. Coursework will address such strategic leadership issues as a basis for ensuring resource efficiency and effective operations. The course also addresses strategic challenges relevant in a global context. 

This course focuses on the theories and principles of strategic leadership of organizations with a mandate to provide health care services, whether public or private. The complexity of strategic leadership may arise from the composition of staff employed, organizational structures and/or from the characteristics of an organization´s environment.  Strategy development in an organization requires exploration of internal and external premises for conducting strategy processes.  Coursework will address such strategic leadership issues as a basis for ensuring resource efficiency and effective operations. An expanding set of organizational stakeholders enters into the complex equation of strategy analysis.  Students will identify them and draw on their findings in shaping strategy proposals. The course also addresses strategic challenges relevant in a global context, including frequent reforms and changing regulations in complex settings with pressures from a broad variety of stakeholders.

Senior leaders must be aware of key concepts in marketing and PR. Fundraising efforts must be supported by organizational leaders to advance the interests of the organization and serve the public good. This course provides insights into executive competencies related to external relationships influenced through marketing, PR and organizational development. 

Senior leaders in organizations that serve the public’s health must be aware of key concepts in marketing and PR to effectively understand how experts manage internal and external images and stakeholder attitudes and perceptions. Fundraising efforts, while typically under the purview of organizational experts, must be supported by organizational leaders to advance the interests of the organization and serve the public good. This course provides students with insights into executive competencies related to external relationships influenced through marketing, PR and organizational development

Review key evaluation theories and frameworks, selection of evaluation questions, evaluation design and data collection strategies, reporting evaluation results, and the political, ethical, and interpersonal considerations in evaluation. Some topics, including research design and data collection strategies, reinforce previous course content.

This course guides students through the steps necessary to produce the outline of a dissertation proposal.  In collaboration with faculty, students will assess the current state of their research questions and literature reviews and generate work plans for revisions, additional refinements and the addition of preliminary ideas about methodology. 

This course guides students through the steps necessary to produce the outline – and to the extent possible, a first draft – of a dissertation proposal.  In collaboration with faculty, students will assess the current state of their research questions and literature reviews and generate work plans for revisions, additional refinements and the addition of preliminary ideas about methodology, culminating in brief oral presentations of dissertation proposal outlines in person in August. Emphasis is on making independent progress on components of a proposal draft, with support and guidance from faculty and peers over six class sessions during the summer.

This is the second in a two-part series to guide students through the steps necessary to produce a draft dissertation proposal.  In close collaboration with course faculty and the students’ dissertation committee chairs and committee members, students will refine their proposals in preparation for oral defense. 

This doctoral-level course exposes PhD students to research designs commonly used in the health policy and management (HPM) literature.  Topics covered will include overview of the research process, types of study designs including their benefits and drawbacks with a strong focus on causal inference designs developed in the field of economics and policy analysis.  At the end of the semester, students should come away with an improved grasp of the interdisciplinary language of HPM research and a deeper appreciation of the importance of research design.

The goal of this course is for the student to understand how to apply quantitative methods to theory-based, hypothesis-driven research.   While the course will review quantitative methods useful to health services research, the emphasis will be on the practical application of such methods, including issues related to data management, the use of different software packages to implement such methods, and the effective presentation of quantitative findings to a variety of audiences. The final course deliverable will be an empirical analysis using national survey data to inform an issue of interest to the student.

This is a qualitative research methods course for doctoral students. Emphasis will be placed on ethnographic field methods as they apply to understanding the organization, implementation, and evaluation of health services. Students will: learn qualitative research design; collect, manage, and analyze qualitative data; and report qualitative findings.

This seminar is the introductory seminar for HPM doctoral students and should be taken in the first or second year of your graduate study. The broad goal of the course is to help you develop your skills in analytic reasoning, critical thinking, knowledge translation, and professional self-reflection necessary for a successful research career.

This course is designed to introduce students to the social and behavioral science principles that provide the foundation for health program planning and disease prevention with an emphasis on population-based public health approaches. Students will explore topics that promote a broader and better understanding of determinants of health; the multiple factors contributing to health and illness behaviors; and the fundamentals, theories and principles that shed light on health and illness behaviors. Students will be introduced to the important complementary and inter-related relationships between behavioral and social determinants of health.

This course is designed to introduce graduate students to the important role that health education, health promotion, and disease prevention play in the overall plan to improve the Nation’s health. This course is designed to prepare students in the science and art of helping people change their lifestyle – stopping smoking, getting exercise, eating nutritious food -- so that they can begin to move toward a state of optimal health and avoid the chronic diseases that are causes of premature death and disability in Indiana, the United States, and around the world. Students will learn to identify factors (social, economic, biological, and cultural) that underlie individual disease risk, understand what barriers prevent behavior change, and the factors that influence individual decision making. They also will study effective preventive interventions directed at individuals (and their personal risk factors) and populations (community level approaches). With this background, the students should be able to better design their own programs as well as critique public health intervention recommendations for at risk populations. Practical use and application of these principles will be gained through class exercises, case study analysis, class discussion, and class assignments.