Fundamentals of Global Health (online)

This course introduces the principles and scope of global health and health-related strategies important for an understanding of health and disease in a global context. Topics discussed in this interdisciplinary course range from global health governance and policy to the role of health systems, ethics and advocacy for research and development, to the effects of globalization and innovation in global health on major health outcomes.

What is global health? Which global health challenges do we face? What are key principles of global health? Who are the major actors in global health and how do they influence global health policy? What are the Sustainable Development Goals and how could they advance addressing major health challenges globally? What is the role of health systems, international partnership, ethical aspects, equity and advocacy for research and development? And what is the impact of migration, globalisation and innovation on health outcomes? These are some of the questions and topics that will be interdisciplinary addressed in this course by international faculty and participants.

By the end of the course, you should be able to:

• understand the health challenges of today’s globalizing world
• apply what you learn directly to your own research
• gain insights into methods used in global health research
• find out how population health is affected by global trends

In particular, you should be able to:

• describe and define the scope and principles of global health
• describe health-related development goals and targets
• understand basic health indicators
• describe demographic trends and population growth
• describe social determinants and inequalities in health
• understand the theory of epidemiological transition
• describe approaches to health equity
• describe the use of mixed methods for global health research
• describe legal frameworks for global health/global health governance
• understand ethical issues in global health research

Our courses are aimed at clinical researchers, nurses, general practitioners, and other health professionals who want to improve their skills in epidemiology, statistics and (clinical) research.

3 weeks, 14 hours per week (online)

Even though you can manage your own time our courses are not intended as individual education. We offer personalized online learning with lots of interaction with peer students, the E-moderator and lecturers. Flexibility from students, a positive attitude towards teachers and peers and the willingness to learn together and help each other is invaluable to our courses. To experience maximum interaction, we advise you to log on several times per week.

Note that the starting dates of courses, interim deadlines, and dates of exams are fixed, but you can choose when and where you want to watch web lectures and work on assignments. The e-moderator of the course will inform you about the beginning of the course and about deadlines during the course.

The average required study workload for the courses of MSc Epidemiology Postgraduate Online is 14 hours per week. You will need this time to study, to keep up with the assignments and course material.