USC Schedule of Classes

Overview and application of behavioral theories to the field of health education and promotion. Examines the determinants of health behaviro and strategies for change at the individual, group and community level.

Historical development of the American health care system; determinants of health care utilization; role of health care providers; health policy; public health services; and health care finance.

Concepts of biostatistics; appropriate uses and common misuses of health statistics; practice in the application of statistical procedures; introduction to statistical software including EXCEL, SPSS, nQuery. Laboratory.

Major parametric and non-parametric statistical tools used in biomedical research, computer packages including SAS. Includes laboratory. Lecture, 2 hours; laboratory, 2 hours.

Exploratory data analysis, detection of outliers, fitting data with linear and nonlinear regression models, computer packages including S-PLUS and SPSS.

Terminology/uses of epidemiology and demography; sources/uses of population data; types of epidemiologic studies; risk assessment; common sources of bias in population studies; principles of screening. Recommended preparation: algebra

Statistical methods for analysis of various experimental designs. Parametric analysis of variance (ANOVA), repeated measures methods, crossover designs, non-parametric ANOVA.

Basic understanding of behavioral risk factors in chronic disease and premature mortality; epidemiological research methods for studying behavioral risk factors. Recommended preparation: PM 512, PM 511ab

An overview of the tools used by statisticians for solving statistical problems. Graded CR/NC.

An overview of the tools used by statisticians for solving statistical problems. Graded CR/NC.

Overview of epidemiological research in cancer. Selected cancer sites will be covered to highlight study design and conduct, exposure assessment, data analysis and interpretation.

Principles and methods used in epidemiology for comparing disease frequencies between groups. Restricted to the analysis of binary outcome variables. Prerequisite: PM 512.

Techniques for the solution of statistical problems throughout intensive computing; iterative techniques, randomization tests, the bootstrap, Monte Carlo methods. Lecture and required laboratory.

b: Theory of estimation and testing, inference, analysis of variance, theory of regression. Recommended preparation: college-level calculus and linear algebra.

Design, conduct, and interpretation of results of clinical trials; emphasis on structure, size, duration of a trial, and the impact of ethical and practical considerations. Prereq: PM 511L & 513.

Application of communication theories and methods to community health problems. Includes background assessment, program design, evaluation, social marketing, media advocacy, review of major health campaigns. Recommended preparation: PM 500

Survey of natural history of infectious disease, methods of disease control and outbreak investigation, and an overview of the epidemiology of injury. Prerequisite: PM 512.

Core concepts, methods and values of public health program planning and evaluation, including community needs assessment, writing objectives, designing health promotion programs, process and outcome evaluation. Recommended preparation: PM 500

An overview of environmental health, identifying issues in assessing effects of exposure on health and potential interventions for reducing adverse health risks. Prerequisite: PM 512

Familial aggregation, segregation analysis, linkage analysis, association, regressive models, gene-environment interactions, genetic heterogeneity and linkage disequilibrium.

Physiological basis for good nutrition during pregnancy and childhood through adolescence. Design, implementation and evaluation of public health nutrition programs and policies serving women and children. Recommended preparation: PM 530.

Theory, methods and procedures of network analysis with emphasis on applications to public health programs.

Transfer function models; stationary, nonstationary processes; moving average, autoregressive models; spectral analysis; estimation of mean, autocorrelation, spectrum; seasonal time series. Includes laboratory. Prerequisite: MATH 225, 226 or 226H, and 208x or equivalent.

Examination of major policy issues in the US health care delivery system to understand policy options in reforming health care and reducing health care disparities.

Comprehensive course covering basic principles of human genetics, genetic disease, the Human Genome Project, and gene therapy.

Provides epidemiologists with an overview of current statistical problems and approaches in the design and analysis of genome-wide association studies. Prerequisites: PM 511a, PM 512. Co-requisite: PM 522a.

Examination of important routes of exposure to toxic materials; how to measure exposure; strengths and weaknesses of different measurement techniques; design of exposure assessment studies. Recommended preparation: PM 510 or one semester of statistics and background in science or engineering for graduate students not in MPH.

Overview of how environmental exposures affect various biological systems and lead to observed health outcomes in populations. Recommended preparation: PM 529.

Approaches for modifying health behavior in varioius settings and within diverse populations. Emphasis on practical considerations necessary to design and implement interventions with demonstrated effectiveness.

Introduction to business and management concepts, tools, and practices in the context of domestic and global healthcare delivery, public health, and allied health industries.

Current public health issues and research topics relating to 21st century challenges and threats. Lessons learned and best practices to strengthen public health systems and enhance public health readiness and preparedness.

Definition and chronology of natural and man-made disasters and their effects on the global community. Structure and organization of disaster management systems and the role of humanitarian organizations. Recommended preparation: PM 501, PM 512.

An introductory course in the statistical methods used in the analysis of human genetic data.

Mammalian organ systems operation during health, and pathophysiologic analysis of related diseases with focus on neuroscience, immunology, metabolism, endocrine, reproduction, GI and liver. Faculty from basic and clinical sciences. Open to graduate students in biomedical science only.

Study designs, exposure-time response, longitudinal, spatial, ecologic correlation and mechanistic models, measurement error interactions, measurement error, public policy implications.

Introduction to the core concepts and methods of planning and implementing health-related programs and research in resource-constrained settings.

Highlights the complex interactions between global health, law and human rights, emphasizing the use of human rights in public health thinking and practice. Recommended preparation: MPH Core coursework. Duplicates credit in LAW 707.

Social inequalities, including racial/ethnic disparities and income related inequalities are examined in the context of access and delivery of health care in the U.S.

History of child health and social welfare programs during the past century. Issues examining health status and health service delivery, the role of health care financing, and health policy.

Introduction to common uses of qualitative research methods in public health research and application. Methods include ethnography, participant observation, open-ended interviewing, and focus groups.

Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.

Field placement in a community agency, such as a county hospital department or community-based organization. Open to MPH candidates only. Graded CR/NC. Recommended preparation: completion of all coursework.

Credit on acceptance of thesis. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of thesis. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of thesis. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Field placement in a public health agency, such as a county hospital department or community-based organization. Recommended preparation: Completion of all MPH coursework. Graded CR/NC.

Provides the culminating, integrative curricular experience for students enrolled in the Master of Public Health program. Recommended preparation: Completion of all MPH coursework.

Special topics relevant to the study of selected issues and areas of health behavior research or other aspects of preventive medicine.

Special topics of current interest to provide background for research in biostatistics and epidemiology. Based largely on student dissertation research. Graded CR/NC.

Analysis and interpretation of data to test clinical translational hypotheses.

Independent research at an advanced level on a problem in the field of Health Behavior. Recommended preparation PM 604. Graded CR/NC.

Independent research at an advanced level on a problem in the field of Health Behavior. Graded CR/NC.

Independent research at an advanced level on a problem in the field of Health Behavior. Graded CR/NC.

Independent research at an advanced level on a problem in the field of Health Behavior.

Independent research at an advanced level on a problem in the field of health behavior. Graded CR/NC.

Short seminar presentations and discussions on issues accompanying the development of the field of health behavior and implementation of research in this field. Graded CR/NC.

Research applicable to the doctorate. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.

Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC.