USC Schedule of Classes

Overview of behavioral theory and research in disease prevention and health promotion and in adaptation to chronic disease, including an introduction to measures of outcomes. Prerequisite: Admission to HBR Ph.D. Program or permission of instructor.

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

Overview of public health concepts and issues, including population health; ethics; health disparities, determinants, and systems of care; global health; policy; health promotion; environmental health.

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.

Macro-level analysis of the structure and delivery of health care services around the world, including an examination and comparison of health system performance.

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.

Statistical methods for analysis of categorical data including dichotomous, ordinal, multinomial and count data, using Stata package. Includes laboratory.

Methods and applications for modeling longitudinal, time-to-event and multi- level data. Includes laboratory using R package. Lecture 2 hrs; laboratory 2 hrs. Prerequisites: PM-511b.

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

Study design, ascertainment of study objects, questionnaire development, various methodological issues in data analysis and interpretation including bias, measurement error, confounding and effect modification.

a: Density distribution and hazard functions; normal, chi-square, student's t and F distributions; and sampling procedures for single factor and multiple factor designs, distributions. Recommended preparation: working knowledge of multivariable calculus and familiarity with linear algebra.

International variations in health status with a focus on the impact of socioeconomic status, politics, environment, education and gender in etiology of illness, access to health care, progression of disease, and recovery.

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

Genetic principles; design and analysis of family studies; introduction to likelihood estimation; segregation and linkage analysis; biomarkers of exposure, susceptibility, and disease; laboratory methods; susceptibility genes; association and linkage disequilibrium.

Overview of concepts, tools, data collection, analysis methods and designs used to evaluate health promotion programs. Examples from substance abuse prevention, family planning and reproductive health programs.

Overview of causative factors and demographic distribution of major chronic diseases in the western world. Epidemiologic concepts, methods and research design as applied to chronic disease prevention will be emphasized. Prerequisite: PM 512.

Exploratory and inferential techniaues for multivariate data, Hotelling's T2, multivariate analysis of variance, classification analysis, principle components, cluster analysis, factor analysis. Involves computer use.

History of biowarfare and bioterrorism; proper surveillance techniques, capacity building for public health and medical communities, and the importance of effective communications. Methods of preparedness, prevention and response are examined. Recommended preparation: PM 512

Stochastic failure process; parametric/non-parametric models for survival analysis; sample size estimation; multivariate regression for binary outcome/censored survival data; multiple failure modes and competing risks.

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.

Examination of environmental public health policies/regulations, the role of science in assessment and policy initiatives, barriers to change, and competing interests that influence policy adoption. Recommended preparation: PM-529.

Examine epidemiologic methods, concepts, and statistical approaches; case-study seminars with structured critiques of current literature on human-environment interactions affecting public health. Recommended preparation: PM-510 and PM-512.

Explores the fundamental concepts of cancer epidemiology, including the molecular basis, descriptive epidemiology, and historical and groundbreaking studies that have impacted the field.

Survey of effective community organizing and mobilization efforts in the U.S. and abroad, using participatory, organizational, community empowerment and public-private partnership models.

Introduction to leadership and management concepts, tools, and practices in the context of domestic and global public health and healthcare delivery settings.

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.

Ethical principles in the distribution of health resources, conduct of global public health research, and implementation of public health initiatives across different nations, cultures, religions.

An introduction to statistical methods for analyzing and interpreting spatially referenced data topics include: geostatistics, areal data, point pattern data and visualization. Prerequisite: PM 511a. Recommended preparation: familiarity with R.

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 muscle, respiratory, cardiovascular and renal systems. 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.

Investigates the way health is organized and administered at the global level, emphasizing the role of international diplomacy and law in governing health.

Overview of issues related to infant, child, and adolescent health, including special health considerations at different points in the developmental cycle, health care systems and policies, and health disparities.

Overview of major infant and early childhood mental health issues, relating to the status of child mental health and the importance of comprehensive systems of care for children that support resilience and respond to biological and psychsocial mental health risks.

Introduction to reproductive health, from preconception to the neonatal and early period of human development. Heavy emphasis on the methods and public health implications.

Provides students with hands on experience of the common methods used in conducting epidemiological studies, and designing and obtaining funding for research projects. Prerequisite: PM-512. Recommended preparation: PM 527.

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.

Part-time or full-time, practical work experience in the students field of study. The internship must be located at an off-campus facility. Students are individually supervised by faculty.

Applied practical experience through field placement in federal, state, and/or local public health agencies/organizations, including community-based organizations; research and school-based settings.

Provides the culminating, integrative learning experience for students enrolled in the Master of Public Health program.

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

Psychosocial basis of health-hazardous lifestyle behaviors and preventive strategies. Recommended preparation PM-500, PM 515

Factor analytic and structural equation modeling approaches to health behavior research -- conceptual, practical and mathematical.

Theoretical basis and practical approaches for identifying, summarizing and interpreting current bodies of scholarly information addressing a defined research question.

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

First of three courses in CTR, a discipline that fosters multidirectional integration of basic, patient-oriented and population-based research with long-term goal of improving public health. Recommended preparation: PM 510.

Process of applying for research grants in health behavior research, including dissertation grants. Covers the structure of NIH and other grantmaking agencies, the grant review process, tailoring ideas to the grantmaker's priorities, research design, development of training and mentoring plans, and budgeting.

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.