Examination arrangement

Course content

The course, PH3000: Global Health, introduces students to a wide range of global health issues predominantly affecting low- and middle-income countries. It provides introductory knowledge of the global burden of diseases and their impact on the health of populations; initiatives for the eradication of infectious diseases; key concepts and challenges in maternal and reproductive health and rights; newborn infant, child, and adolescent health; the health consequences of gender-based and other types of violence and conflict; malnutrition and child growth; determinants of health, inequality and inequity in health, and tools to address them; an introduction to medical anthropology and cultural perspectives on health, illness and disease; human rights and ethical responsibilities and debates in global health; environmental/ecological factors affecting health; familiarisation with immunization, vaccines, antibiotic resistance, epidemics and of microbes transmissions (travel, animals, food, trading); different types of global health system and policy issues such as health care financing, organisation of health care; primary vs. specialised care, centralised vs. decentralised systems and private vs. public solutions; cost-effectiveness analysis of health care interventions.

Learning outcome

Upon completion of the PH3000 course, the student is able to:

• identify, describe and analyse important global health problems
• understand the relationship between determinants of health and major global health problems/challenges
• describe sustainable ways to improve health, considering economic, cultural and ethical issues
• describe and assess the global burden of diseases, morbidity, mortality, communicable and non-communicable diseases, and preventive measures
• describe and assess women's, maternal, sexual and reproductive health and rights
• describe and assess health consequences of exposure to violence and war trauma
• explain the interconnecting causes of global health problems
• describe the Sustainable Development Goals 2015-2035
• present, discuss and communicate major global health issues and critically consider evidence-based interventions for improving health
• understand the basics of the distribution of ill-health and interactions between health determinants - physical, cultural, social, ecological and political
• communicate key global health issues and sustainable responses to these multifaceted health challenges
• understand a broad typology of health systems, different models for health care organisation, provision and evaluation
• describe some key strengths and weaknesses of health systems in low- and middle-income country (LMIC) contexts
• discuss challenges related to health policy and systems in LMIC contexts

Learning methods and activities

Lectures, seminars, groupwork tasks, written and oral presentations, individual studies.

The language of teaching and examination is English.

Compulsory assignments

• Mandatory assignment 1
• Mandatory assignment 2

Further on evaluation

The course is taught over two semesters, autumn and spring, with a final written exam in the spring semester (i.e., no course exam in the autumn semester).

There are two mandatory course assignments (pass/fail), one in each semester. Information about the two assignments and the final exam will be shared near the end of each semester. Students must complete the assignments prior to sitting the examination. If a student is to re-sit the exam, the approval of the two mandatory assignments is valid for one year (two semesters).

Specific conditions

Required previous knowledge

Admission to the MSc in Global Health. Exchange students may be accepted after an individual evaluation but must be aware that this course spans two semesters.

Course materials

There is no required textbook for the course. Recommended textbooks, journal articles, blogs, podcasts, reports and other similar resources will be shared by the course coordinator and some lecturers throughout the two semesters of the course.