Title:	Global Health Fundamentals I (equivalent to Core Course for the tropEd Master of International Health)
Country:	Spain
Institution:	Spain - Barcelona Institute for Global Health - University of Barcelona
Course coordinator:	Dr. Nuria Casamitjana
Date start:	2024-09-13
Date end:	2024-12-19
About duration and dates:	14 weeks of study (classes run Mondays to Fridays from 9:00h – 13:30h, with a 30 min. break).
Classification:	core course
Mode of delivery:	Face to face
Course location: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences - University of Barcelona Aula Manuel Corachan C/ Casanova, 143 08036 Barcelona, Spain
ECTS credit points:	20 ECTS credits
SIT: 500 hours SIT Contact hours: 180 Self-study hours: 320
Language:	English
Description: The core course introduces students to the fundamentals of international / global health as stated in the following aims. By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● critically reflect on the collection, analysis and appraisal of qualitative and quantitative data relevant to the improvement of health and health care equity ● identify and analyse interrelated determinants of health and major health concerns of populations from an inter- and trans-disciplinary perspective in low- and middle-income settings and on a global level ● propose sustainable improvements for health systems to address inequities and consider diverse intercultural settings as well as social, legal and ethical responsibilities ● describe the role, decision-making process and impact of global health policy actors ● collaborate and clearly communicate in multidisciplinary and multicultural settings
Focus or specific features: During the core course, research methods and techniques are taught and practised to stimulate key critical thinking skills. This supports students’ capacity to analyse and interpret data that can expand global health knowledge and contribute to the evidence-informed design, implementation and evaluation of health policies, programmes and interventions at local, national, regional and global levels. The core course also includes compulsory attendance to weekly skills-building seminars of different types: - Methodological seminars needed for the development of a research project - Thematic seminars relevant to global health on topics not included in the modules (e.g., decoloniality in global health, AI and global health, etc.) Learning Objectives related to the tropEd aim, “Critically reflect on the collection, analysis and appraisal of qualitative and quantitative data relevant to the improvement of health and health care equity:” By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● Critically interpret and evaluate relevant literature on global health. ● Describe, manage and analyse basic global health quantitative and qualitative data. ● Apply statistical tools in global health research. ● Assess the impact of global health interventions. ● Describe how quantitative and qualitative methods can contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of global health interventions. ● Develop tools for collecting quantitative and qualitative data. ● Explain the process of analysing quantitative and qualitative data and interpret the results of quantitative and qualitative studies. ● Describe how to develop disease surveillance and how to interpret surveillance data. ● Describe the basic stages of the investigation of a disease outbreak. Learning Objectives related to the tropEd aim, “Identify and analyse interrelated determinants of health and major health concerns of populations from an inter- and trans-disciplinary perspective in low- and middle-income settings and on a global level”: By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● Identify and understand the principal determinants that influence population health in different parts of the world. ● Describe the methodologies used to identify and measure the impact of health determinants and health inequalities. ● Incorporate knowledge of health determinants and inequities into the design of policies and interventions. ● Describe the burden of disease that affects low and middle-income societies / communities and their social determinants / risk factors. ● Discuss the prevention, control and management of major population health concerns in low- middle-income settings. Learning Objectives related to the tropEd aim, “Propose sustainable improvements of health systems to address inequities and consider diverse intercultural settings as well as social, legal and ethical responsibilities”: By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● Describe the principal components of health systems and their particularities in LMIC. ● Discuss how and by whom global health policies are formulated, as well as their principal implications for health systems and programmes in LMIC. ● Identify the principal stakeholders, including organisations, public and private, which play an important role in global health issues, and their interrelation with health policies and systems. ● Analyse successful experiences in the formulation of policies and the organisation of health systems in LMIC. Learning Objectives related to the tropEd aim, “describe the role, decision-making process and impact of global health policy actors”: By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● Discuss the history and the current state of global health architecture. ● Analyse who formulates global health policies and how these policies are formulated, as well as the implications of these policies for health systems and programmes at national, regional and global levels. ● Explain the principal components of health systems and debate differences between systems in HIC and LMIC countries. ● Describe the main agencies and organisations, public and private, that take on a significant role in health systems. ● Demonstrate how health programmes and interventions can be integrated into a health system. Learning Objectives related to the tropEd aim, “collaborate and clearly communicate in a multidisciplinary and multicultural settings”: By the end of the core course students should be able to: ● Identify strategies to obtain information for the development of solutions that address global health problems. ● Apply transdisciplinary approaches to address complex global health challenges ● Apply knowledge and transferable skills in the field of global health, such as those related to management, leadership, and communication ● Work in multidisciplinary teams to find and implement solutions that address principal global health problems and challenges, with ethics and respect for human rights. ● Effectively and appropriately communicate the results of health interventions or evaluations in diverse settings and contexts.
Assessment Procedures: Detailed information on the assessment of the five modules that constitute the core course follows. I. Global Health Challenges: Evaluation is based on group work. Each group will develop and present a health profile of an LMIC from a global health perspective. 1. Group work I: Oral presentations (60% of the final module grade ). Students will be divided by the coordinators into groups that guarantee diversity (balance of gender, geographic origin, academic disciplines). Each group will be assigned an LMIC (World Bank classification) to be characterised according to the topics covered in the module sessions following instructions provided by the course coordinators. Each group will be asked to give three oral presentations. Each of the three presentations will be evaluated by module faculty and will represent 20% of the final grade . Detailed instructions and the schedule of group presentations will be provided by the start of the course. 2. Group work II: Written work (40% of the final module grade ). Groups will produce a brief written report about their assigned country using the information obtained to prepare the oral presentations, insights from the oral presentations made by other groups, and feedback from faculty and students during the discussions. This exercise requires writing a maximum of 1.500 words, plus an additional page of bibliographic references. In the document, students should answer the following questions: a. What are the main health challenges the country is facing? b. What are the main factors affecting those health challenges? c. What are the specific reasoned recommendations for action for the country to address their health challenges in the next decade? The instructions for students and the rubric associated with this course are included as examples in Annex 2. Resit: Students in a group failing the evaluation will be asked to submit a paper profiling a different LMIC following the same criteria described in the Group Work Guide. The due date will be communicated to affected students by the module coordinators. II. Health Systems & Policies Students will be assessed on three components: 1. Case study (30%): Group presentation. At the beginning of the course, students will be presented with case studies that analyse country health systems. Each case will be assigned to a group of 7-8 students, who will apply course concepts in their response to a series of four pre-established questions. Students are expected to work as a group outside of face-to-face class sessions. Each group will be assigned a date for the oral presentation of their work at the beginning of the module. Oral presentations can be up to 30 minutes in length, and each group member must present a section of the presentation lasting up to 5 minutes. At the end of the course, each group must turn in a complete copy of the presentation slides and notes (using the notes function in PowerPoint). 20% of the final grade will be based on the oral presentation and 10% of the grade will be based on the final submitted PowerPoint presentation. 2. Abstract (40%): Written individual work. Each student will individually write an abstract summarising the main features of the health system(s) discussed in the country case study assigned to the group that they were part of, based on their group’s responses to the total set of questions asked by the coordinator for the specific country case. Abstracts should be no longer than 350 words (excluding references) and must include brief responses to all of the questions discussed in class. 3. Two individual multiple-choice exams (30%): Two in-class multiple-choice exams consisting of 10 questions each (each worth 15% of the overall module grade) will be based on required readings and core concepts. Resit: Students who fail to achieve a passing grade on any of the course assessments will have the opportunity to take a resit in the form of an in-person 30-minute examination consisting of three open-ended questions on key themes drawn from required readings and lectures. The resit will take place on an agreed-upon date within two weeks of the last day of the course. III. Biostatistics The evaluation is individual and assessed according to the following criteria: The final module grade will be calculated as the mean of the scores of two different groups of assessments: 1. Quizzes and homework (40% of the final grade): There are three quizzes and one homework. The quizzes are self-evaluated questions or Stata-mediated exercises based on the three statistical sessions: descriptive analysis, linear regression and logistic regression. The evaluable homework corresponds to the data management sessions. Each quiz/homework will have the same value. In order to pass the module students must achieve a minimum grade of 5 out of 10 on this group of assignments. Students who miss one quiz for justified reasons (e.g., ill-health supported by documented evidence) will be offered the opportunity to take an extra quiz related to the content of the missed quiz. 2. Practice assignment - final exam (60% of the final grade): This assessment includes a set of questions to be answered at the end of the course using provided data and practice exercises with the Stata programme. This part of evaluation represents the other 60% of the final module grade. In order to pass the module students must achieve a minimum grade 4 out of 10 on examination. Resit: Students with a global score less than 5,0 will have the opportunity to undertake an extra quiz or practical work with questions on module session contents. This resit must be completed within 15 - 30 days after the final course grades have been communicated. IV. Fundamentals of Epidemiology Students in the course will be evaluated individually using a mixed multiple-choice and open-ended question written examination (25 questions) at the end of the course. Exam length: 120 min Resit: A similar mixed multiple-choice and open-ended questions written examination (25 questions) will be offered as a resit for students who do not reach the minimum score of 5 out of 10 on the first evaluation. The resit will take place approximately one month after the results of the first evaluation have been published. V. Fundamentals of Qualitative Health Research The evaluation is comprised of three components: 1. In-class test of 20 questions (60% of final mark). The test will be administered via the virtual campus. Each question in the test has 4 possible responses, and only one response is valid. The test will be held on the last day of the course. The students will have 30 minutes to complete the test. 2. Group work (40% of final mark). The instructions will be posted on the virtual campus and explained by the coordinators on the first day of the course. The working groups (5-6 people per group) will be also organised on the first day of the course. The group work will include two parts: (a) elaboration of a qualitative research protocol developed step-by-step over the course and the production of a concept note(b) presentation of the key aspects of the protocol following the COREQ/O´BRIEN-SRQR Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research. The protocol (in both the written concept note and oral presentation) will include the following sections: (i) problem formulation and research question, (ii) qualitative theoretical approach and research paradigm, (iii) researchers’ characteristics and reflexivity, (iv) sampling strategy, data collection methods, (v) data management and data analysis plan, (vi) ethical issues and techniques to enhance trustworthiness (vii) dissemination and publication plan. One person from the group will be responsible for uploading the concept note and the PowerPoint presentation (including the title of the protocol and the names of the group members) before the penultimate day of class at 00:00 (CET). Group presentations will take place on the last day of class. Each presentation will last a maximum of 10 minutes with 5 minutes of Q&A in the class plenary. Each member of the group will need to individually and confidentially complete and send through the virtual campus the group peer assessment form before the last day of class at 00:00 CET. There is no requirement to pass the two assessments separately in order to pass the module. To pass the module, the weighted sum of the grades of the two components must be at least 5 out of 10. Resit: Students who do not receive an overall module grade of at least 5 out of 10 will have the opportunity to revise and resubmit the individual work explained in point 2 above within 30 days of the last day of the module. General information that applies to all assessment components: Criteria for the assessments of each module are included in the corresponding rubrics available to all students at the beginning of the module in the virtual campus. The grading system employed in the core course is the one that applies to Spanish higher education programmes and is adopted by the University of Barcelona. It is expressed as a numeric score up to one decimal, on a scale from 0 (worst) to 10 (best). In general, a minimum grade of 5 out of 10 is required to pass a course or programme, The final grade for the core course will be calculated as 100% of the five module grades weighted by the ECTS credit value. Note: If students choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools (e.g., ChatGPT) they should be aware of the risks and limitations of their use. In such a case, students will be held fully responsible for any errors included in that work. We strongly encourage you to consider how the use of these tools impacts your learning and, if you choose to use them, to prepare yourself thoroughly to use them well and to be able to responsibly and critically review their outputs. Its use should always be acknowledged in the references section.
Content: 1. Introduction and learning skills (minimum 0,5 ECTS) ● Orientation day to introduce the programme 2. Concepts, theory and methods for global health research (quantitative and qualitative) (minimum of 4,5 ECTS credits) ● Biostatistics (100 h SIT, 4 ECTS) ● Fundamentals of epidemiology (50 h SIT, 2 ECTS) ● Qualitative research methods (37,5 h SIT, 1,5 ECTS) Total = 7.5 ECTS 3. Global health concerns (e.g., SDGs, health emergencies, communicable and non-communicable diseases, mental health, maternal & child health, sexual and reproductive health and rights, environmental health, climate & health, injury…), and response strategies (minimum of 4.5 ECTS credits). ● Global health challenges (100 h SIT, 4 ECTS) ● Fundamentals of epidemiology (37,5 h SIT 1,5 ECTS) ● Qualitative research methods (37,5 h SIT, 1,5 ECTS) Total = 7 ECTS 4. Global health policies, health systems, their management, financing and strengthening (minimum of 4,5 ECTS credits). ● Health systems and policy (100 h SIT, 4 ECTS) ● Fundamentals of epidemiology (37,5 h SIT, 1,5 ECTS) Total = 5,5 ECTS For details, see table 1 In addition to the modules indicated in the required blocks, students must attend Friday seminars that include: introduction to research proposal development, communication and presentation skills, scientific writing, quotation and referencing systems, teamwork and leadership skills.
Methods: Regarding learning methods, we follow the recommendations of the University of Barcelona at Master’s degree level that require active learning and participative methods in which students learn by doing or simulating. Specific learning methods and activities may vary between the five modules that make up the Global Health Fundamentals I core course, depending on the type of content covered in each building block. The Global Health Core course includes, in addition to lectures by experts: - Discussion and debate - Assessment of readings - Practise exercises - Data exploitation and analysis - Application activities - Case study analysis - Role playing - Peer learning activities - Individual work - Group work (criteria for organising the groups in terms of representation and diversity are considered) Rubrics are provided to students at the start of each module detailing the criteria for evaluating the assessments. The virtual campus is used for communication with students, sharing all course information and materials, uploading written assignments, and taking online quizzes and tests. This is a face-to-face course, but online videoconference applications are used for some sessions. For example, to facilitate the participation of faculty experts based in different geographical regions that provide a diversity of perspectives and insights on global health topics.
Prerequisites: Minimum entry requirements: o Undergraduate degree of a minimum of 180 ECTS (or equivalent) preferably, but not exclusively, in health or life sciences or social sciences, and o At least one year of professional experience, preferably related to global health (internship and volunteer experience will be considered). Language requirements: The Master’s programme is taught entirely in English. Non-native English speaking tropEd candidates must provide an English language level TOEFL test 550 or 213 computer-based or 79/80 internet-based or IELTS band 6.0 or equivalent. Exceptions include candidates who have previously completed studies in English or who can validate prior professional experience in English. An interview in English is a compulsory step in the admissions process. o All registered students are required to attend a Core course introduction and orientation day at the beginning of the programme o Three weeks before starting the sessions, students will be asked to enrol in the virtual campus (based on a Moodle platform), where orientation materials (documents, references, tutorials) will be available to incoming students. o At the start of the course, students will be invited to join the Linkedin Alumni Group so they can interact with current and past students, and ask for peer advice and academic and practical matters. o During the period prior to the start of the sessions, students will receive regular communications via the virtual campus (accessible both through the platform and their email inboxes) with practical and logistical information on how to get ready for the course. They can also ask questions of the programme coordination through the forum in the virtual campus. o During the first six weeks of the programme, each student will be scheduled to have at least one tutorial meeting with a member of the programme coordination, to discuss their adaptation to course dynamics, and their choices in relation to advanced modules and their final research project topic and supervision. Options for future career development may also be discussed. Students will be invited to at least one initial meeting and can subsequently request additional meetings as needed.
Attendance: The maximum number of students accepted in the Master programme in Global Health is 35. There is no limit for the number of tropEd students within the total accepted. The programme will not run with fewer than 10 students.
Selection: Application and selection process: o Candidates must complete a pre-registration form through the ISGlobal website and include the following documentation: o A detailed curriculum vitae (CV). o A motivation letter or video. Candidates who meet the prerequisites will be accepted for the selection process. A panel made up of the programme directors and programme coordinators will review all applications. Students will undergo a pre-selection to verify that they meet the prerequisites and have submitted all the required documents based on: 1. CV and previous grades 2. Past work / study experience 3. Plans to apply skills and knowledge gained through the master programme as discussed in the letter of motivation and the interview o Pre-selected candidates who meet the minimum requirements for acceptance to the programme (undergraduate degree in health or life sciences, social sciences, or related fields and at least one year of relevant experience (including internships or volunteer work)), will be invited to a 30 minute admissions interview (online). o In addition, candidates will be required to complete a standard University of Barcelona application form and provide documentation of their academic qualifications to the University of Barcelona, i.e., undergraduate diploma and transcript, as indicated on the website. University requirements for the translation and legalisation of academic qualifications earned in other countries may apply. In the event of oversubscription, the most highly qualified candidates (based on above mentioned criteria) will be selected.
Fees: 2024-2025 tuition for the core course Fundamentals of Global Health I is 3.800 € or 190€ per ECTS credit plus university taxes (approx. 80 €).
Scholarships: There are no Scholarships available.
Major changes since initial accreditation: There have not been major changes regarding the structure of the core course since its last re-accreditation in 2019. However, feedback received from students and faculty in module evaluations has been integrated to improve content and methodology whenever needed. Major changes: ● The learning objectives and course contents have been adapted according to the reformulated aims approved by tropEd and evolution of the global health field. ● The content of the first module, Global Health Challenges, was changed based on evolution of the field and priorities, for example, COVID 19 and pandemic preparedness-related content was added; as well as sessions on the increasing importance of mental health at global level. ● Content on fundamentals of health determinants, was reinforced in the same first module on Global Health Challenges. ● New approaches, including One Health and Planetary Health, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), digital and m-health, Artificial Intelligence, etc., have been added. This includes the increasing impact of environmental factors and climate change on health as well as technology. ● The timetables of the modules on Biostatistics and Fundamentals of Epidemiology were revised in order to make them more complementary to each other, as advised in student feedback. ● Class attendance has a lower weight in the assessment overall, as advised in student feedback. However, modules encourage and value active participation in class through questions, discussions, and debates. ● Regarding assessment of the modules that comprise the “core course,” feedback from students has been very useful to define and improve assessment tools. Currently, all modules have developed specific rubrics that facilitate grading. ● The Moodle platform has been increasingly developed and is used extensively to interact with students ● We are very concerned about being diverse and inclusive, including different approaches, perspectives and alternative views on the different topics in our courses. The debate around decoloniality and decolonising global health is very present amongst faculty and students. Specific seminars are organised with invited lecturers and tools and references are provided to faculty. ● The approach of the module on Qualitative Research Methods has been adapted based on student feedback (see section 23) including case studies and examples that reflect an awareness of different sensitivities and perspectives. One of the faculty of this course was replaced because of consistently low evaluations.
Student evaluation: Student feedback is collected for each module in the Master’s degree via an online survey, as well as through face-to-face sessions with course coordinators at the end of each course. Some comments are the following: ● Overall, students have been rating the core course at 4 or 4+ points out of 5 over the past 5 years. ● In the last two editions, the module on Qualitative Research Methods has received lower ratings. Some students expressed concerns that the approach of one of the faculty members was not respectful of different sensitivities and cultural perspectives and that the examples they employed were not the most adequate for students entering the global health field. In this case, the faculty member has been replaced for the next edition, and the examples and case studies used are being renewed. ● During face-to-face feedback sessions, students have also assessed the core course positively, although some have expressed concerns about the workload involved (including the number of readings). These concerns were addressed with course coordinators and mentoring and tutorial sessions, including support for time management skills, were reinforced to help students deal with the programme requirements. ● Students have also expressed a preference for modules with fewer faculty members and with a greater presence of the course coordinators in the classroom. In that sense, the syllabi and faculty allocation to sessions have been revised to make course sessions more consistent.
Lessons learned: Continuous feedback from students and faculty is very important and key to evolve and adapt. Many of the lessons learnt are reflected on the changes explained in sections 23 and 24.
tropEd accreditation: Accredited in September 2012 and re-accredited in November 2014 and in June 2019 in Umea, Sweden. Re-accredited in June 2024 in Cuernavaca, Mexico. This accreditation is valid until June 2029.
Email Address:	nuria.casamitjana@isglobal.org
Date Of Record Creation:	2012-10-09 03:46:32 (W3C-DTF)
Date Of Record Release:	2012-10-09 04:24:05 (W3C-DTF)
Date Record Checked:	2019-09-02 (W3C-DTF)
Date Last Modified:	2024-07-16 10:12:56 (W3C-DTF)