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Unit of study_
NURS5002: Social Contexts of Health
2025 unit information
This unit of study focuses on the social determinants of health through a critical analysis of the relationships between social factors (e. g, ethnicity, race, gender, socio-economic status, employment, climate change) and patterns of health and illness across the lifespan in contemporary Australia. The unit introduces students to epidemiology, the study of causes and patterns of disease within defined populations and research, which provides the basis for understanding social determinants of health. This unit also explores ideas and beliefs about health, illness and care that are relevant in the Australian context and introduces students to the study of primary health care, cultural safety and cultural competence as these relate to nursing and health care more broadly in contemporary Australia.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Medicine and Health
| Study level | Postgraduate |
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| Academic unit | Nursing and Midwifery |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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None |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Critically discuss the social and cultural underpinnings of contemporary Australian society, and the relationship between these and patterns of health and illness across the lifespan.
- LO2. Develop a beginning understanding of quantitative research, particularly epidemiology.
- LO3. Critically analyse and reflect upon the main ideas and beliefs that have shaped contemporary discourses in health, illness and care, and the meaning of these for the provision of healthcare, particularly nursing care.
- LO4. Develop a beginning understanding of the ways in which nursing practice is informed by, and responds to, the culturally diverse nature of contemporary Australian society.
- LO5. Search for, locate, critique and use the international literature that explores key concepts, research evidence and current debates related to this unit of study.
- LO6. Work collaboratively and effectively with peers in group learning activities and assessments
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 1 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown / Darlington, Sydney | |
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Semester 1 2025
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Normal day | Westmead, Sydney |
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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.
