Postgraduate taught 

Public Health MPH/PgDip/PgCert

Social Determinants of Health MED5522

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Health and Wellbeing
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
  • Typically Offered: Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

The Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) are the non-medical factors that determine our health and wellbeing. Throughout this course, we take you on a journey to explore the reasons why we must consider the socioeconomic and political reasons leading to health inequalities. We explore key theories of inequality and social stratification within a health context and apply these to various examples throughout the course.

Timetable

Weekly sessions comprised of lectures, seminars, and asynchronous material.

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

Essay [2,500w; 70%; ILOs 1-4]

Poster [30%; ILO 3, 4]

Course Aims

To provide students with a firm grounding in understanding the social determinants of health and the relationship with health inequalities in society.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

1. Critically appraise theoretical perspectives of the social determinants of health and health inequalities;

2. Synthesise evidence to examine how health can be socially, economically, and politically determined in a variety of societal contexts;

3. Identify and critique approaches to mitigating social determinants of health;

4. Evaluate the role of government and/or non-governmental organisations (NGO) in tackling social determinants that lead to health inequalities.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.