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Unit of study_
HSBH3009: International Health
2025 unit information
This unit examines theoretical and practical issues confronting global health professionals and practitioners, especially in low resource settings. It provides students with opportunities to apply their disciplinary expertise in the interdisciplinary, international health setting. The unit takes interdisciplinary approach to introduce students to: a) historical, political and economic forces that influence the health of populations around the world and contribute to international health inequities; b) global health crises (emerging infectious disease such as Covid-19, chronic disease such a s diabetes and cancer and disability) facing both developed and developing countries and their impact; and,c) international health initiatives and practices, including key actors and initiatives, as well as challenges and strategies for working in crosscultural contexts. The unit provides students with an understanding of health determinants and interventions in international contexts, with a particular emphasis on lowresource settings. Examples of topics covered include health, poverty and inequality, foreign aid and development assistance, globalisation, technology and health. The unit also provides an introductory overview of contemporary international health challenges such as food security, humanitarian crises and climate change. Students will be introduced to global health data to better understand disparities in health and inequality. Students will undertake individual and group work to study global health from multiple disciplinary perspectives; they will investigate an indepth study of a global health issue, analyse global health data to explore the context in which it emerged and the forces that propel it, and advocate for actions to improve the issue in a specific local context and population group.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Medicine and Health
| Study level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Academic unit | Participation Sciences |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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48 credit points of units |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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BACH3128 |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. understand the global burden of disease and its impact; identify the health priorities in both developed and developing countries, the multiple approaches that exist to meet these priorities, and factors that shape the development of these approaches
- LO2. recognise the impact of structural inequalities in the global social and political economy on population health and wellbeing
- LO3. better understand the contemporary issues including global health challenges (for example Covid-19), global mobility, refugee and humanitarian crisis, food security/insecurity, and climate change
- LO4. appreciate the significance and limitations of development assistance and humanitarian aid to protect and improve the lives of the world’s sick and poor
- LO5. examine international health regulations, analyse international health data and development priorities, and interventions spanning multiple disciplines that exist to meet those priorities
- LO6. understand the importance of local context and participation in the formulation of policies and programs to improve population health
- LO7. work individually and in interdisciplinary groups to investigate and provide insights into problem solving for complex global health challenges
- LO8. reflect on and demonstrate an understanding of disciplinary assumptions, methodologies and foundational knowledge that contribute to solving problems in local and international health contexts.
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 2 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
