The Influence of Social Determinants on Health Specialization

This is an introductory course on social determinants of population health with a focus on the United States. The course will introduce you to, or reinforce your knowledge of, issues related to health that consider behavioral, psychological and structural factors in population health beyond the healthcare system. We will examine social, economic, and political factors that contribute to health inequalities and suggest innovative ways to reduce disparities in health when the goal is to achieve health equity.

This course will increase your awareness, knowledge, and understanding of issues related to behavioral, psychological, and structural factors that contribute to understanding population health and health inequities. We will discuss conceptual and methodological issues key to health professionals working towards achieving health equity to reduce health disparities at multiple levels of influence. There will be opportunities to practice skills involving cultural humility, deliberative dialogues and professional self-assessments. By the end of this course, you will be able to: Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequalities and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community and societal levels

Why are some groups healthier than others, and how do these differences emerge and persist over the life course? How do social policies (e.g., housing, transportation, employment) relate to health and health inequalities? Why are there health disparities even in countries that have free universal health care? This course will address conceptual models for understanding health disparities in the US and internationally, how population science identifies the main sources of these disparities, and how public health can inform policy efforts to address these disparities.

After taking this course, you will be able to identify ways in which conditions in the healthcare setting and at work, school, and home influence health; identify models for considering how the social context provides both sources of stress and sources of support for health; and explain how social and physical environments, including schools and workplaces, the healthcare system, and neighborhoods, shape health and health inequalities over the life course.