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URBAN HEALTH   

The course deals with public health issues associated with growth of urban population in developing countries as well as the emerging middle class populations. Emphasis will be on urban health problems of developing countries; health of slum areas, affluent areas, migrants/refugees, children, the aged, and populations at high risk (e.g. CSW, MSM, IDU). Changes in urban physical and social environment and their consequences for lifestyle risks and health, design and implementation of coordinated and cost-effective health care system will be examined. 

 Objective: The objectives of the course are to:

  • Build the capacity of students to appreciate concepts and theoretical perspectives on urban health
  • Appraise policies and programmes on urban health.

 Mode of Delivery: The course is delivered through lectures, case studies analyses, individual and group presentations.

Course Code: 
POH 814S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
Second Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

MIGRATION AND HEALTH  

This course covers some concepts and theoretical perspectives on the relationships between migration and health in both the past and contemporary era. It examines both communicable and non-communicable health issues among both voluntary and involuntary migrants, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa but some examples will be drawn from developed countries as well to expose students to the global context. The implications of migrants’ health to both places of origin and destination will be examined. It also situates migration and health within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals. Relevant case studies will be emphasized on to enhance students’ understanding of the synergies between migration and health.

Objective: The course will build the capacity of students to:

  • Understand the relationships between migration and health in both the past and contemporary; and
  • Analyse the implications of migrants’ health to the socio-economic development of both places of origin and destination.

Mode of Delivery: The mode of delivery will be lectures, individual and group presentations.

Course Code: 
POH 813S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
First Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

CONTEMPORARY HEALTH ISSUES IN AFRICA

The course examines contemporary issues in current challenges in health, aspects of health transition in the context of the emergence of new and the re-emergence of old infections; issues of endemicity and the spread of diseases; emergence of diseases associated with life styles; management of health; financing of health care; challenges of health for an ageing population; the roles of national and multinational institutions (e.g. World Health Organization (WHO)) and international NGOs in health.

Objective: The aim of the course is to develop the capacity of students to:

  • Analyse contemporary  health issues in both Ghana and Africa
  • Interpret and discuss population and health issues in both Ghana and Africa

Mode of Delivery:This course is delivered through lectures, presentations and group discussions.

Course Code: 
POH 812S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
Second Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

 STATISTICS IN SOCIAL SCIENCES

                      

The course involves intermediate statistical techniques and their application to social science issues. Topics to be discussed include nature and meaning of statistics, measures of central tendency and dispersion, probability, time series, normal distribution, sampling techniques, testing of hypothesis, correlation and regression analysis. Students will be introduced to packages such as SPSS and STATA.

 Objective: The objectives of the course are to equip students to:

  • Develop analytical skills in social science research
  • Analyse and interpret statistical data in social sciences.

Mode of delivery:The course will be delivered through lectures, practical exercises and presentations.

Course Code: 
POH 811S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
First Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

RESEARCH METHODS 

This course deals with issues of the nature and scope of social science research (issues of epistemology, ontology and methodology). Among the topics to be covered are perspectives in social science research, concept and sources of knowledge, concept of research problem, types of research, philosophies informing quantitative and qualitative data collection, quantitative and qualitative techniques and in social science research, issues of validity, reliability, representativeness in social science research, questionnaire drawing, developing an interview guide, and ethical issues in social science research

Objectives: The objectives of the course are to:

  • Build the capacity of students in social science research methodology
  • Develop the skills of students to undertake quantitative and qualitative research.

Mode of Delivery : The teaching will be conducted through lectures, fieldwork, group and individual presentations.

Course Code: 
POH 810S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
Second Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

URBANISATION AND HEALTH IN AFRICA  

The course deals with the historical development and contemporary issues of urbanization in the world generally and sub-Saharan Africa in particular. It includes definitions of urbanization, models and conceptual issues in urbanization such as primate city, rank-size rule, conurbations, morphology of cities, resource utilisation and related human activities such as access to different modes of transportation, education, health, housing, sanitation, arts and cultural heritage, economic, business and job creation activities and healthy urban lifestyles in general.

 Other aspects are measures of urban change and growth and the role of urbanization in national development, urban poverty and inequality, slums, violence and conflict, governance and participation, resilient cities and sustainable urbanization.

Objective: The objectives are to develop the capacity of students to:

  • Analyse issues associated with the process of urbanization
  • Appraise the implications of urbanization on the socio-economic development of urban centres. 

 Mode of Delivery:  This course will be delivered through lectures, seminars and group discussions.

Course Code: 
POH 809S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
First Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

  POLICIES AND POLITICS OF HEALTH     

The course examines policies adopted to provide health care and also consider past, present and policies of health in Africa and Ghana; strategies that have informed policies and programmes in health at the global (e.g. Health for All by the Year 2000, Millennium Development Goals, Sustainable Development Goals), continental (Bamako Initiative, Maputo Declaration on HIV and AIDS) and national levels (e.g. payment regimes; health insurance) as well as other factors which influence health delivery (e.g. brain drain and emerging technologies). The topics will include: the politics of public health; the concept of public versus private participation; health policy-making process and implementation; global influences on domestic health policy formulation in sub-Saharan Africa.

Objective: At the end of the course the student will be equipped to:

  • Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual issues in policy formulation
  • Analyze factors which inform health policies globally and in Africa
  • Relate the knowledge gained to policy formulation in health.

 Mode of Delivery: This will be in the form of lectures, seminars, group discussion and case studies.

Course Code: 
POH 808S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
Second Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

  SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY   

The course involves analysis of the distribution of diseases in space; social, cultural and psychological determinants of risk behaviour and occurrence of diseases. Other topics are perception of risk, relationships between population, society and individual characteristics and morbidity and mortality. It focuses on the principles and their applications for the investigation of public and social health problems, planning, implementation and evaluation of health intervention strategies. The following areas will be covered: social determinants of health, , transition of communicable diseases, concept of causality, epidemiological study design, clinical trial designs, estimation of risk, screening and evaluation of diagnostic test, and standardization of rates.

 Objective: The objectives of the course are to develop the capacity of students to:

  • Understand the concepts, principles and methods of social epidemiology
  • Apply social epidemiology on issues in population and health.

 Mode of delivery: Lectures, presentations and group discussions.

Course Code: 
POH 807S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
First Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

  NATURAL POPULATION CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT

The course provides an overview of the levels, patterns and trends in nuptiality, fertility, morbidity and mortality and their implications for development. Issues covered include historical, spatial patterns and socio-cultural dimensions associated with population dynamics. It will also involve theoretical and empirical dimensions of the changes at the global, continental and national levels with emphasis on Ghana and Africa.

Objectives: The objectives of the course are to:

  • Develop the capacity of students to be able to analyse the dynamics of natural population change.
  • Equip students with the skills to analyze the various demographic perspectives on population change and development.

 Mode of Delivery: The content will be delivered through lectures, guest lectures, individual and group presentations and assigned readings.

Course Code: 
POH 806S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
Second Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

POPULATION MOVEMENTS     

The course deals with conceptual and theoretical issues in population movements. It covers historical and contemporary perspectives of both voluntary and involuntary migration with particular emphasis on causes and consequences of population movements in Ghana and sub-Saharan Africa; refugee movements, transnationalism and irregular migration. Other issues include mobility and its health implications. The course also discusses migration within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the policies and programme implications at both origin and destination.

 Objective: The course will build the capacity of students to:

  • Understand and appreciate the dynamics involved in human population movements in both the past and contemporary; and
  • Analyse the implications of population movements on the socio-economic development of both places of origin and destination.

Mode of Delivery: The mode of delivery will be lectures, individual and group presentations.

Course Code: 
POH 805S
No. of Credits: 
3
Level: 
Level 800
Course Semester: 
First Semester
Select Programme(s): 
Population and Health

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