All students must complete a minimum of 15 credit units in their area of interest. These additional courses are chosen in consultation with the student's faculty supervisor and the approval of the MPH Director. In planning their schedule, students should remember that not all courses are offered in any given year.
Prior approval is required previous to registration in any MPH elective course not appearing on the approved list below. Please complete the MPH Elective Course(s) Permission Form and submit it along with a copy of the course syllabus to the MPH program Director for approval.
Please note that students are permitted to complete a maximum of two elective courses (6 credit unit hours) outside of the University of Saskatchewan.
This following suggested list is intended only as a guide and it is subject to change. Students are encouraged to review the course calendar for additional opportunities and details about MPH approved elective courses.
AGMD 802.3 - Rural Health Systems - Will provide a detailed look at issues surrounding rural and remote health, including demographics, health determinants, models of health care delivery, health policy, and health promotion strategies. Students will have the opportunity to review relevant literature on rural and remote health topics and to then discuss these topics with health care providers, administrators, educators and policy makers with a wide range of expertise and practical experience.
ANTH 804.3 - Medical Anthropology - Will survey the theoretical and conceptual trends within the field of medical anthropology, spanning biocultural, clinical, ecological, political economic and critical interpretive approaches. The substantive areas of focus include reproductive health, infectious disease, disability, mental illness, health systems, and healing.
CMPT 830.3 - Bioinformatics and Computational Biology - Provides an in-depth algorithms-based introduction to major concepts and techniques in bioinformatics. Topics include algorithms for structure prediction and similarity, sequence similarity and alignment, metabolic and regulatory pathways, sequence assembly, comparative genomics, expression analysis, database searching, artificial life and biological computation.
CMPT 857.3 - Readings in Bioinformatics (Not Offered in 2011-12) - Reviews and discusses recent advances and issues in Bioinformatics through paper presentation by students. Topics will range from computational biology to artificial life and biological computation. Students will be evaluated based on their presentations and participation, as well as a small project.
NURS 892.3 - Research Methods (Online) - Focuses on research methodology with application to clinical nursing problems. Major emphasis will be placed on elements of the research process, critical analysis and evaluation of nursing research, quantitative and qualitative research design, and developing proposals for nursing research investigations.
NURS 893.3 - Qualitative Research Methods (Online) - Provides opportunity for in-depth examination of the main traditions of qualitative research inquiry and methods. Included are: critical discussion of all elements of method and experience of writing a qualitative proposal with respect to nursing issues.
NURS 897.3 - Nursing Research Advanced - The focus of this research course is on the design of quantitative research to advance the development of nursing knowledge. The course will examine various theories and assumptions of research design, measurement, and intervention development to investigate nursing practice issues and health outcomes.
PUBH 802.3 - Public Health Protection (Not offered in 2012-13) - This course will link the theory of health protection with public health applications in real day to day settings in the work place. It will provide direct connections to how the public's health is protected through a variety of programs such as water, food, air quality, soil, tobacco enforcement, etc. Lectures, seminars and field visits will be the main means of instruction.
PUBH 808.3 - Introduction to Health Care Management - Meant to serve as an introduction to management for students in the School of Public Health with little or no management education or work experience. Students will learn management principles applied to health care systems; skills of critical reading; computational competence; and presentation and discussion skills at a graduate level. It will prepare them for more advanced classes in health management.
PUBH 809.3 - Field Epidemiology - Links the underlying theory to the practical application of epidemiological methods in the investigation and control of disease outbreaks. Case examples will be drawn from communicable and non-communicable diseases in both humans and animals.
PUBH 842.3 - Current Biostatistical Methods and Computer Applications (2012-13 Term 2) - This course will introduce statistical methods commonly used by biostatisticians and their application in current research problems. The emphasis will be on the analysis of discrete outcomes and time-to-event data in observational and experimental designs. Class participants will develop skills in applying statistical models using existing software packages such as SAS and R.
PUBH 843.3 - Advanced Topics in Analytical Epidemiology (2012-13 Term 2) - This is the third in the series of epidemiology methods classes and it introduces students to advanced epidemiological tools and analytical concepts including complex data management, exposure analysis, generalize linear mixed models, GEE, survival analysis, detection of clusters, spatial models, and Bayesian analysis. Emphasis is placed on the correct application and interpretation of techniques presented as they apply to observational epidemiology. Prerequisite(s): PUBH 846 and (PUBH 842 or CHEP 806 or PUBH 898 [Biostatistics for Public Health II]).
PUBH 844.3 - Chronic Disease Epidemiology - This is an advanced course that examines the theory, methods and applications of epidemiology in chronic disease and health conditions. The course identifies conceptual approaches and methods in survey research, the use of administrative health data, biomarkers, and the control of bias. Students apply this foundational knowledge to the leading chronic health conditions through presentations and a critical review of research protocols. Prerequisite(s): CHEP 800.3 or equivalent.
PUBH 845.3 - Clinical Epidemiology (Not offered in 2012-13) - Clinical epidemiology is the science of applying the best available research evidence to clinical care. This is an advanced course which emphasizes the principles and methods used in clinical decision analysis, screening and diagnostic testing, intervention studies, and the preparation of systemic reviews and clinical practice guidelines. Prequisite(s): CHEP 800.3 or equivalent.
PUBH 853.3 - Seminar in Health Care Organizational Regulation and Policy - Explores management issues unique to health care organizations. It includes an examination of the regulation of health care organizations. Also covered are such topics as cost benefit/cost-effectiveness/cost-efficiency analysis, managerial accounting as it relates to the health care environment, health care finance and the management of case mix systems.
PUBH 864.3 - Health Care Ethics and Law - Divided into three major sections. Section 1 provides a brief overview of the Canadian legal system. Section 2 covers such legal concerns of patients and health care providers as negligence, informed consent, and the regulation of health professions. The law portion of the class focuses on issues pertaining to health care management. Section 3 explores the theory of ethics and places ethical issues and problem solving in a practical context.
PUBH 898.02 - Health Care Reform - A Work In Progress - This course will provide students with the history of health care restructing in Saskatchewan during the early 90's and a comparison to other jurisdictions in Canada. It will discuss health human resource restructuring and the role that played in the health reform of the early 90's and how collective bargaining works, for example. It will look at the differing roles of the health regions, the provincial government and major agencies such as SAHO within the health care system.
PUBH 846.3 - Analytic Methods in Epidemiologic Research -
PUBH 852.3 - Canadian Health Care Systems -
PUBH 861.3 - Health, Post-Secondary Education and Social Programs: Funding, Structure and Reform - The course will begin by establishing the foundations for the current funding of health, care, post-secondary education and Canadian social programs. The course will also consider the main elements of a budget. The major assignment for the class will involve students working together to compile a provincial budget. The course will consider the various policy tools used to reform Canadian social programs and post-secondary education and discuss why similar reforms have not occurred in health care. The course will also teach students how to write key government documents, such as briefing notes and budget materials.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Aging and Health - Aging and Health is a three-credit interdisciplinary public health course designed to provide students in all health related disciplines with a general background and understanding in aging and the problems and strengths of older persons. Its content is relevant to students who: a) plan to work with older persons, b) conduct research in fields related to aging, and c) simply want to better understand their own aging or that of their parents, relatives or friends.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Introduction to Aboriginal Public Health (Not offered in 2012-13) - This course will provide students with an examination of the unique and complex public health challenges facing Aboriginal People in Canada. The course will provide a historical background and current context on healthcare barriers in order to present options on how to move forward.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Toxicology - This course will examine the basic concepts and principles of toxicology in the context of public health. Principles underlying the chemical, physiological and anatomical basis of toxicity, dose-response relationships, toxicokinetics, and biotransformation, mechanisms of cellular injury and death, organ system toxicity, and chemical carcinogenesis will be discussed. Toxicological principles will be illustrated and applied in the context of public health. Utilizing a case study format, specific examples of toxicity resulting from occupational and environmental exposures will be utilized to illustrate the application of toxicological principles to the understanding and prevention of public/occupational health risks.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Research Methods in Public Health - Research is a systematic undertaking to establish evidence. Although research is a fallible source of knowledge, it is the most sophisticated method of acquiring knowledge to advance the academic disciplines. This course provides fundamental health research skills necessary for the public health professional to work in both research and applied settings. This course will focus on the issues and skill required at each specific stage of the research process and will explore the practical and relevant issues involved in the design, and conduct of research activity. Students will have the opportunity to experience and apply their knowledge through the critical appraisal of published research and the development of a research proposal aimed at addressing a critical public health issue.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Biostatistics for Public Health II (Not offered in 2012-13) - This course is a continuation of PUBH 805.3 and includes several multivariate biostatistical methods and principles that are commonly used in public health research. The course topics include logistic regression, analysis of variance and covariance, cross-over designs, observational data analysis, categorical data analysis, person-time data analysis, and reliability. The course also introduces SAS programming as it applies to the course topics.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Public Health Nutrition (Not offered in 2012-13) -
AGMD 800.3 - Public Health and Agricultural Rural Ecosystem (PHARE) online - Provides the foundation knowledge for issues related to rural health, public health and agricultural rural ecosystems. This PHARE course provides an overview of the major health issues, general health, and health service delivery issues facing persons in rural and remote areas of Canada. It provides an overview of the environmental health challenges for rural and agricultural populations in the areas of risk management, injury control, workplace safety, food safety, and protection of the biosphere. Note: AGMED 800 provides the foundation for the Public Health and Agricultural Rural Ecosystem Training Program (PHARE), a graduate training program funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). As well, AGMD 800 is beneficial as an elective to students enrolled in such disciplines as Veterinary Medicine, Agriculture, Nursing, Medicine, Dentistry, Economics, Community Health and Epidemiology, Engineering and Health Policy.
AGMD 801.3 - Introduction to Occupational Health - This course is an introduction to occupational health, industrial hygiene, and environmental health issues. It will provide an overview of occupational and environmental hazards and illnesses, including their recognition and control, pathophysiology, prevention, and legal and regulatory issues.
CMPT 858.3 - Topics in Modeling and Operations Research - In-depth coverage of recent research areas from Operations Research, and applications to system modeling. Advanced topics from mathematical programming, queuing theory, inventory control, simulation, Markov modeling, and simulation.
NURS 814.3 - Aboriginal Health Issues (Online) - Examines issues and challenges related to the health of Aboriginal populations in Canada. Health and illness concepts will be embedded within historical, social, cultural, and political realities. The student will have the opportunity to critically examine and reflect on Aboriginal health issues and health care practices.
NURS 816.3 - Community within the Context of Diversity and Vulnerability (Not offered in 2012-13) - Involves intensive inquiry into selected topics on community within the context of diversity and vulnerability. Traditions of research, philosophical assumptions and epistemological stances for conducting research with these populations will be examined. Ethical and methodological issues related to community-based research will be explored in the context of contributions to culturally relevant knowledge.
NUTR 811.3 - Advances in Public Health Nutrition Research (T2 alternate years 2012 next) - Concepts and recent advances in a variety of topics in the domain of Public Health Nutrition are described and discussed with emphasis on evaluating nutritional status at population level and on community-based nutrition interventions. The course is instructed in three sections including Nutritional epidemiology, Food Security, Food and Culture. Students will be exposed to quantitative and qualitative approaches to research in public health nutrition. Students will learn through a combination of faculty lectures and student presentations, assignments, practice on data analyses and interpretation, and papers in a self-directed study format.
PUBH 832.3 - Infectious Disease Epidemiology - Lectures and exercises will provide an introduction to epidemiology of infectious disease including issues in diagnosis and surveillance, disease ecology and transmission, options for control, discussion of diseases important to public health, emerging diseases, and reporting.
PUBH 843.3 - Advanced Topics in Analytical Epidemiology - This is the third in the series of epidemiology methods classes and it introduces students to advanced epidemiological tools and analytical concepts including complex data management, exposure analysis, generalize linear mixed models, GEE, survival analysis, detection of clusters, spatial models, and Bayesian analysis. Emphasis is placed on the correct application and interpretation of techniques presented as they apply to observational epidemiology. Prerequisite(s): PUBH 846 and (PUBH 842 or CHEP 806 or PUBH 898 [Biostatistics for Public Health II]).
PUBH 844.3 - Chronic Disease Epidemiology ( 2012-13 Term 1) - An advanced course that examines the theory, methods and applications of epidemiology in chronic disease and health conditions. The course identifies conceptual approaches and methods in survey research, the use of administrative health data, biomarkers, and the control of bias. Students apply this foundational knowledge to the leading chronic health conditions through presentations and a critical review of research protocols.
PUBH 846.3 - Analytic Methods in Epidemiologic Research (2012-13 Term 1) - This course will give students an advanced and comprehensive understanding of the principles of design and statistical analysis of epidemiologic research. Students will learn the strengths and weaknesses of established methods of epidemiologic research and will also achieve the ability to independently design, perform, analyse and critique observational health research. Prerequisites: (PUBH 800 or CHEP 800) and (PUBH 805 or CHEP 805) and (PUBH 842 or CHEP 806 or PUBH 898 [Biostatistics for Public Health II] (One of the group of advanced biostatistics courses can be taken concurrently with PUBH 846).
PUBH 847.3 - Studies in Addictions -
PUBH 852.3 - Canadian Health Care Systems (2012-13 Term 1) - Introduces students to the administrative and financial structures of health care services in Canada and to the role expectations of different interest groups and stakeholders involved in the delivery of health services. Examines the organizational structure and operations of health care delivery systems and agencies. Explores the operations of community health centres, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, long term care institutions, home health care services and various other public health services.
PUBH 842.3 - Current Biostatistical Methods and Computer Applications -
PUBH 861.3 - Health, Post-Secondary Education and Social Programs: Funding, Structure and Reform (2012-13 Term 1) - The course will begin by establishing the foundations for the current funding of health, care, post-secondary education and Canadian social programs. The course will also consider the main elements of a budget. The major assignment for the class will involve students working together to compile a provincial budget. The course will consider the various policy tools used to reform Canadian social programs and post-secondary education and discuss why similar reforms have not occurred in health care. The course will also teach students how to write key government documents, such as briefing notes and budget materials.
PUBH 898.2 - Special Topics: Water and Health - This course explores the multi-faceted ways in which water and human health are related. In a global context, the central role of water in preserving health; the influence of climate change, chemical contaminants, waterborne pathogens on human and environmental health; and the social, cultural, economic and political dimensions of water as it relates to health will be explored.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Introductory Aboriginal Health (Not offered in 2012-13) -
PUBH 898.4 - Health Economics - The goal of the course is to introduce the advanced student in a graduate program in one of the health sciences to the field of health economics. Many of the policies considered by provincial and federal governments have involved issues that have been analyzed by health economists. This course demonstrates how basic economic concepts and theories such as economic models of demand, production, and markets for goods and services can be used to analyze the key resource allocation questions in health care. The course will apply economic models to consider the demand for and utilization of health services; and supply of health services, encompassing issues of cost, efficiency, and accessibility of care. The incentives and behavior of consumers and producers of health care will be considered using these models. We will cover concepts such as market failure, public goods, and the role of government. The course will draw upon the health economics literature from both developed and developing countries.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response - This course takes a One Health/All Hazards approach to emergency preparedness and disaster response (EPDR) with regards to public and animal health. Preparedness is defined as readiness to respond to and manage a disaster, and response is defined as actions taken during and immediately after a disaster to reduce severity. In the first half of this course, we will develop a standardized approach to preparing for and responding to animal and public health emergencies of any origin (an all-hazards approach). In the second half of the course, we apply this approach and explore special considerations for bioterrorist events, pandemics, foreign animal disease outbreaks, food borne illness outbreaks, civil emergencies, and large-scale events with significance for animal and public health.
PUBH 898.3 - Special Topics: Global/International Health (Not offered in 2012-13) -
GEOG 898.3 - Special Topics: History of Public Health -
PUBP 802.3 - Public Finance (Not offered in 2012-13) - Provides a survey of Canadian public finance. Students will examine rationales for government intervention in a market economy, the assessment of public policy, how government decisions are made and the impact of government expenditures and taxation on the economy and the well-being of Canadians, in terms of economic efficiency and interpersonal equity.
VACC 801.3 - A Multi-disciplinary Introduction to Vaccinology and Immunotherapeutics - This required course provides an introduction to the scientific basis of vaccination, the pathobiology of infectious diseases, vaccine manufacturing, production and commercialization, as well as socio-ethical aspects of vaccines such as risk perception and public acceptance. Other topics will include legal issues such as intellectual property law, public health aspects of vaccines, national and international immunization programs and the use of vaccines in disease outbreaks. The course will be taught by recognized experts in the field with guest lectures given by experts from both industry and regulatory authorities.
VLAC 840.3 - Zoonosis and Food Safety - Will focus on the characterization and distribution of diseases common to animals and man. A selection of important zoonoses and food safety issues will be specifically covered with an emphasis on the principles of zoonotic disease transmission and control, risk factors to humans, and surveillance methods.
VLAC 881.3 - Clinical Trial Design and Analysis - A course for veterinary graduate students who need an understanding of clinical trial design, statistics and clinical epidemiology in order to carry out their research and to evaluate themselves as clinicians. The course will cover areas of clinical trial design, applied medical statistics, diagnostic test evaluation and writing research grants.
VTMC 340.3 - Veterinary Public Health (Not offered in 2011-12) - Intended to demonstrate the role the veterinary profession plays in public health protection in Canada. The practicing veterinarians and veterinarians who work as public health professionals play a role in serving public health in aspects such as disease surveillance, risk analysis, biosecurity, foreign animal disease containment, food safety, and international public health. The course will also emphasize how public health is protected in Canada through aspects such as food and water safety, animal feeds, antimicrobial resistance, and waste disposal. By using examples of zoonotic and emerging diseases, the course will attempt to illustrate the various points of contact and interventions for diseases shared by animals and people.
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