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HED 0102 - Health and Social Justice

http://catalog.sierracollege.edu/course-outlines/hed-0102/

Catalog Description Advisory: Eligibility for ENGL C1000 Hours: 54 lecture Description: Provides an introduction to the health inequities in the United States that stem from unequal living conditions. Students will explore how education, socioeconomic status, racism, and gender shape health epidemics and policy development. Fundamental theories to advocate for health and social justice will be explored, and community organizing approaches will be practiced. (C-ID PH 102) (CSU, UC) Course Student Learning Outcomes CSLO #1: Compare a public health model that considers structural, social and economic determinants to an individual lifestyle and behavior change model to explain disparities in prevalent health conditions. CSLO #2: Summarize disparities in health outcomes in the US by race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender CSLO #3: Analyze the contribution of social inequality, economic inequality and environmental conditions to disparate health outcomes. CSLO #4: Analyze how discrimination based on race, socioeconomic status, and gender become embodied in disparate health outcomes. CSLO #5: Compare U.S. policy on access to healthcare to other developed nations and analyze emerging U.S. public health and healthcare legislation through an equity lens. CSLO #6: Interpret public health epidemiologic data and resources to assess current health disparities. CSLO #7: Analyze advocacy strategies, including public testimony, editorials, community organizing, policy briefs, policy change, and large-scale social movements, that reduce health inequities. Effective Term Fall 2025 Course Type Credit - Degree-applicable Contact Hours 54 Outside of Class Hours 108 Total Student Learning Hours 162 Course Objectives Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: 1.     Describe disparities in health outcomes in the United States by race, socioeconomic status, and gender. 2.     Compare and contrast the two paradigms that seek to explain health disparities: the individual approach and the public health model. 3.     Compare United States healthcare policies with that of other developed countries and contrast the characteristics of each system. 4.     Analyze the contribution of environmental conditions to disparate health outcomes, using case studies. 5.     Describe the connection between environmental justice and disparate health outcomes based on race, class, and gender. 6.     Analyze case studies of prevalent health problems to compare individual behavior change approaches versus public health approaches. 7.     Describe strategies or tactics to improve health inequalities, such as advocacy, community organizing, and/or policy change. 8.     Demonstrate advocacy skills, such as outreach, organizing, and mobilization of communities to improve health outcomes. 9.     Identify, assess, and utilize credible information resources on public health current issues, such as the Internet, social media, media outlets, and libraries. General Education Information Approved College Associate Degree GE Applicability AA/AS - Health Ed/Physical Ed CSU GE Applicability (Recommended-requires CSU approval) Cal-GETC Applicability (Recommended - Requires External Approval) Cal-GETC 4 - Social and Behavioral Sciences IGETC Applicability (Recommended-requires CSU/UC approval) Articulation Information CSU Transferable UC Transferable Methods of Evaluation Classroom Discussions Example: Classroom discussion on previous and emerging current event topics inn the area of health and social justice Objective Examinations Example: Quizzes and exams will be used that measure the student’s ability to analyze health and social justice problems including health disparities, social injustices in healthcare provision, etc., and to evaluate the efficacy of various medical and population-based methods and services for addressing these issues. For example, list 5 of the greatest public health achievements in the last century according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Projects Example: Individual and group projects that demonstrate understanding of the disparities in health provision, accessibility, and outcomes, and the role of society in addressing these issues (as well as demonstrating appropriate use of reliable print and internet resources). Students will create a project (multiple methods of submission) highlighting health social justice movements in the U.S. and globally. Repeatable No Methods of Instruction Lecture/Discussion Distance Learning Lecture: Instructor-led group discussions and case studies on topics such as the health/wealth gradient, race/ethnicity and gender privilege in the US, environmental justice, access to education, and health outcomes based on employment and housing Distance Learning A class discussion prompt will be given asking students to reflect on the impact to the public from the period of time of the onset of the Covid 19 pandemic to today. The students will be given an article to read "ENOUGH: COVID-19, Structural Racism, Police Brutality, Plutocracy, Climate Change—and Time for Health Justice, Democratic Governance, and an Equitable, Sustainable Future ." Students will then be asked to reflect on how the intersection of identities and social determinants of health impacted various communities differently. The instructor will engage in the thread providing probing questions or giving examples to help connect the points of the article to textbook reading and previous class discussions and content. Typical Out of Class Assignments Reading Assignments Reading assignments on topics such as racial income and wealth disparity (health/wealth gradient), access to education, health outcomes based on employment and housing, disparate impact on communities of various illnesses (e.g. cancer, COVID-19, asthma, lead, diabetes, heart disease). The students will then be asked to outline and discuss the main points of the reading that demonstrate the connection between social determinants of health in various communities and disparate health outcomes. Writing, Problem Solving or Performance Written assignments such as community walk-through and letter to policy maker or news editor. Other (Term projects, research papers, portfolios, etc.) Final research paper on a social determinant of health connected to a health disparity, including etiology, epidemiology and proposals for institutional or policy change Required Materials Health and Social Justice: Politics, Ideology, and Inequalities in the Distribution of Disease Author: Hofrichter Publisher: Publication Date: 2003 Text Edition: Classic Textbook?: OER Link: OER: Public Health and Social Justice Author: Donohoe, Martin Publisher: Jossey-Bass Publication Date: 2012 Text Edition: 1st Classic Textbook?: OER Link: OER: Social Injusticeand Public Health Author: Levy, B Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication Date: 2019 Text Edition: 3rd Classic Textbook?: OER Link: OER: Health Equity, Social Justice and Human Rights Author: Fiona H. McKay and Ann Taket Publisher: Routledge Publication Date: 2020 Text Edition: 2nd Classic Textbook?: OER Link: OER: Other materials and-or supplies required of students that contribute to the cost of the course.