School of Public Health Departments/Programs: Department of Behavioral Sciences and Community Health   Behavioral Sciences and Health Promotion   General Public Health   International Health   Maternal and Child Health Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology   Biostatistics   Epidemiology (M.P.H.)   Epidemiology (Dr.P.H.) Department of Disability and Human Development Department of Environmental Health Science Department of Health Policy and Management Department of Physical Therapy Department of Speech-Language Pathology

Department of Environmental Health Science

Robert W. Amler, M.D.
Interim Department Chair

Susan Goodwin, Ph.D.,
Program Director for Environmental Health Science
 

• M.P.H Program Curriculum
• Graduate Certificate in
   Environmental Health Science
• Program Course Descriptions

Environmental health science is a multi-faceted field incorporating a variety of professionals, including epidemiologists, toxicologists, clinicians, industrial hygienists, policy analysts, attorneys, and molecular biologists. Environmental health professionals typically hold positions in industry either in compliance programs or as health and safety officers; in consulting firms performing environmental monitoring; in not-for-profit environmental organizations as researchers; or in government in the areas of inspections and permits, water quality, food, sanitation, or air quality.

The Program in Environmental Health Science at the School of Public Health provides the conceptual framework and practical tools to recognize and address environmental hazards. Required concentration courses familiarize the student with issues of air and water quality as well as pollution, environmental law, and risk assessment. Students learn analytical and problem-solving skills as well as how to communicate with technical and non-technical groups.

The following courses are all 3 credits, unless otherwise noted.

M.P.H. Curriculum - 46 credits

1. Required courses: 22 credits
   
   Health Care in the United States
   Health Economics
   Behavioral and Social Factors in Public Health
   Environmental Influences on Human Health
   Introduction to Biostatistics
   Introduction to Epidemiology
   Thesis
   Practicum (1 credit)
2. Required program courses: 15 credits
   
   Air Pollution
   Pollution and Waste Management
   Environmental Toxicology
   Principles of Occupational Health OR
   Industrial Hygiene
   Public Health and Water Quality
3. For Practicum and electives: 9 credits
   See academic advisor

Required courses: all courses are 3 credits

Environmental Influences on Human Health
Pollution and Waste Management
Environmental Toxicology
Public Health and Water Quality
Principles of Occupational Health OR
Industrial Hygiene

Health Care in the United States

This course provides a comprehensive overview of healthcare programs and policies in the United States. Lectures enable students to understand the major constituencies involved in healthcare and introduce them to current public health issues, healthcare delivery systems, and factors that determine health policy

Introduction to Biostatistics formerly Health Quantitative Sciences I

This course is an introductory graduate course that presents the fundamental statistical approaches employed in clinical research. Lectures cover basic probability, common distributions, samples and populations, interval estimation, and inferential statistical approaches. By reading medical literature, students learn how statistical techniques are applied to clinical data, and practice summarizing and interpreting analytic results.

Introduction to Epidemiology formerly Health Quantitative Sciences II

This course introduces students to the principles and practices of epidemiology and provides them a population-based perspective on health and disease. Students learn the basic measurements of frequency and association and the methods employed in describing, monitoring, and studying health and disease in populations.

Health Economics

This course explores the concepts of scarcity, social choice, rationing, resource allocation, efficiency, investment, and market forces and their relationship to health services delivery and health policy. A variety of analytical principles and methods are examined and applied to issues including healthcare financing, cost containment, regulation, access, insurance, productivity, and program evaluation.

Behavioral and Social Factors in Public Health

An overview and introduction to the way in which behavioral and social factors contribute to health. The course covers a wide range of topics: theories of behavioral science which have been applied to health behaviors; socio-cultural factors in disease etiology and the role of social conditions and social policy in addressing critical public health problems; individual, group, community, and technology-based strategies for health behavior change; and current issues in behavioral science for health promotion including its application to achieving the Healthy People 2010 goals.

Environmental Influences on Human Health

This survey of the major environmental determinants of human health covers physical, chemical and biological sources of exposure; routes of exposure in humans; etiology of environmental disease and mortality; and the complexities of environmental public policy. Topics include airborne pollution, contaminated water and food, solid and hazardous waste, and risk assessment as a tool for regulation. Students have the opportunity to tour a local public works facility.

Principles of Occupational Health

This course explores the historical background of work and health, recognition and prevention of occupational disease and injury, hazardous exposures at the workplace, including chemicals, ionizing radiation, noise, stress and shift work, injuries and disorders by organ system, and considers selected groups or workers such as agricultural and construction workers.

Industrial Hygiene

Designed to familiarize professionals with the methods used by industrial hygienists in the prevention of occupational diseases, this course covers such topics as the physical form of air contaminants, air sampling and analysis, engineering controls and the preparation of survey protocols.

Public Health Engineering

Environmental, sanitation and engineering problems are explored. Topics include communicable and non-infectious diseases, water and waste water treatment, solid waste, food protection, vector control and noise.

Air Pollution

This course explores air pollution in terms of measurements and control, pollutant dispersion, air quality standards and health effects. The legal and enforcement aspects of air pollution control and the nature and quantity of atmospheric emission from vehicles, incinerators and specific industries are reviewed.

Environmental Chemistry

Chemical processes occurring in the natural environment (air, water, soil) and the alterations induced by humans, cities, transportation, agriculture, industry and new technologies are examined as are control and preventive measures designed to alleviate the adverse effects of hazardous chemicals.

Safety Engineering and Occupational Health

This course focuses on current aspects of safety engineering and occupational health, with emphasis on safety program management and evaluation. Course content is directed toward areas covered by the Certified Safety Professional Board examination.

Ergonomics

This course focuses on ergonomics as a multidisciplinary preventive science concerned with the design and redesign of work environments; work stations; machines; tooling; office organization; selection of equipment and methods of material handling based upon human characteristics and capabilities; and training employees in using equipment and performing tasks in a more healthful and comfortable manner. The course also focuses on the investigation of environmental factors such as light, acoustics, temperature, humidity, and air quality, which affect employees and the manner in which they conduct their work.

Advanced Safety Engineering and Occupational Health

This course employs a case analysis method in examining advanced ergonomic topics, safety design, disaster planning, safety performance evaluation, accident investigation and analysis, and safety analytical methodology. Professional practice modules are included.

Environmental Science

This course is concerned with the environment as it relates to public health. It considers ecosystems as units of sustainability; finding a balance among population, soil, water, and agriculture; pollution of air, water, soil, and food, as well as its control. Attention is given to difference approaches to pest control, water management, sewage management and treatment, and pollution from hazardous chemicals.

Pollution and Waste Management

Principal man-made contaminants of air, water and soil stemming from habitats, transportation, industry, and agriculture are examined. Also reviewed are water and sewage treatment, recycling of resources, methods of treatment and disposal of solid waste, and control and preventive measures designed to alleviate the adverse effects of hazardous chemicals.

Environmental Toxicology

This course stresses basic concepts essential to the understanding of the action of exogenous chemical agents on biological systems. Principles underlying the absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination of chemicals are discussed. Toxicokinetics, specific classes of toxic responses, and experimental methods used to assess toxicity are reviewed. Emphasis is placed on developing the skills necessary to approach toxicology as a quantitative science.

Industrial Toxicology

This course presents toxicology of industrial products and materials, such as metals, pesticides, hydrocarbon solvents, paints and plastics, and petroleum products and petrochemicals, with emphasis on mode of action and risk assessment. Toxicology testing methods, regulatory aspects of toxicology, use of toxicology in industrial hygiene, product safety communication, and product liability legal actions are discussed.

Environmental Epidemiology and Risk Assessment

This course features the population approach to environmental and occupational health problems. Epidemiologic research methods and study design issues are explored, focusing on disease clusters, surveillance activity, characterizing human exposure, biomarkers, summary risk assessment and communication. Public awareness, policy implications and impact upon legislation are also addressed.

Public Health and Water Quality

This course addresses drinking water and waste water systems from a public health perspective and closely examines the water quality regulations impacting these two public works areas. The course provides an historical overview and includes discussion of the health effects of water-related diseases. Water quality criteria, water standards, regulations and physical-chemical technologies are examined, along with regulatory monitoring and reporting, through the review of case studies. Watershed and reservoir management, protection and storage, and household plumbing are also examined. Field trips are arranged.

Environmental Law and Management

This course focuses on the process by which environmental laws and regulations are enacted and applied to the work place and other areas. Case studies and current legislative and regulatory proposals are examined to equip students with the knowledge needed to interact with regulatory agencies and to impact the legislative processes at the federal and state levels.

Genetic and Environmental Factors in Human Disease

This course examines how environmental and behavioral factors influence disease by affecting genetic and molecular mechanisms. Basic genetic concepts and methods, such as, heritability, family studies, and pedigree analysis are presented. These methods will be applied to examine the epidemiology of several chronic diseases such as obesity, colon and breast cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. The research linking environmental exposures, such as radiation and chemical mutagens, to disease is critically reviewed.

Public Health Risk Assessment

This course applies the fundamentals of health and environmental risk analysis to real world problems. Students will be required to draw upon their course knowledge and work expertise to assign degrees of risk and to identify risk reduction alternatives. They will be given the tools to develop a health risk assessment report.

Field Experience in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences

An opportunity to apply theory by working in an approved public health organization or equivalent is provided to the student. Field work is supervised by a faculty member who serves as liaison to the health organization.

Directed Research in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences

This course provides advanced study and research in an area chosen by the student in consultation with the professor as well as opportunities for work on special problems.

Tutorial in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences

This course involves comprehensive individual study of a specific topic, guided by the professor.

Thesis

It is expected that the thesis will be an original scholarly work involving an analysis of new or existing data on a subject relevant to the field of public health. It should be noted that theses may require review and approval by the university's Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to initiation of any thesis work. Students should work through their program director to determine whether their thesis topic requires IRB review. Further, students must maintain regular contact with their program director during their thesis work to insure that their activities continue to meet the standards and regulations governing health care research.

Practicum

Students must complete a practicum. This is to assure that students have practical experience to support academic skills and information acquired within the broad filed of public health before they enter the world of public health practice. To fulfill this requirement, students will generally register for a one-credit pass/fail course in excess of the 45 credits required for the degree. Students who can demonstrate appropriate practice experience prior to beginning their M.P.H. studies may apply for a waiver.