Public Health of Disasters Both natural and man-made disasters, including the release of weapons of mass destruction, reveal a community’s preexisting vulnerabilities.  The emergency response, and the nature of the disaster itself, combine to affect the short- and long-term health of the disaster-struck community.  We will examine public health components of disasters, including emergency preparedness and response, relief efforts, health surveillance, and the ethical considerations of these activities.  With case studies and readings, we will employ a public health perspective to understand the community impact of natural and man-made disasters in both developed and developing countries.

Principles of Epidemiology This course will introduce students to the theory and practice of epidemiology.  Students will learn major concepts including study design, measures of effect, and causal inference. We will explore the causes of modern diseases with a focus on how epidemiology can be used to understand causation of disease. We will also explore the historical and current contributions of epidemiology within the field of public health. The course will introduce areas of specialization including infectious and non-infectious diseases, environmental epidemiology, and social and community epidemiology. Students will learn data analysis skills applicable to research in public health and other quantitative sciences. Students will utilize skills from class to investigate an epidemiological issue using real world data. Students will also lead discussions on how epidemiology is used to investigate the determinants of disease. Students will leave the course with understanding of key epidemiological concepts, and the ability to convey those ideas to a lay audience in written and oral formats.

Social Entrepreneurship and Global Health Social and structural determinants of health create barriers to availability, accessibility and uptake of health services in many countries. We will take a case study approach to examining how social entrepreneurs develop and scale up responses to help clients overcome these barriers. We will explore factors including: human rights, poverty, disenfranchisement of women, government health care systems and infrastructure, human resources for health, task shifting, the politics of sexual/reproductive health, and infectious diseases. We will draw on articles and online materials. This course mixes theory and case study, and will count as an elective towards the Global Health minor.

Global Health This course provides an introductory survey of the basic issues and initiatives in contemporary global public health, demonstrating the inextricability of public health problems from the social, cultural, economic, political, and environmental issues that exist in an era of globalization.  Examining these connections will enable us to critically evaluate the goals and strategies of public health interventions, and discuss factors impacting their success or failure.  To do this, we must also examine the lens through which the West views public health problems as they relate to our cultural beliefs, biomedical views of health, sense of justice, and strategic interests.  (Not open to students who have taken INTD 0257 or SOAN 0267)

Healthcare in the U.S. At a time when achieving consensus on anything is close to impossible, nearly everyone agrees that our current health care system is broken. In this course we will explore the impediments to reforming health care in the United States, which by a variety of measures wastes approximately 25% of the country’s 3.8 trillion dollars spent annually.  The goal in this course is not to argue a certain perspective.  Rather, through readings and discussion of original sources, we will explore the complexities of our health care system, evaluate its attributes and failings, compare it with other systems around the world, and wrestle with questions posed by our current trajectory. We will explore how powerful interests—Big Pharma, insurance companies, hospital lobbyists, and physician guilds-- array to maintain the status quo despite clear evidence of alternative paths that would serve the greater good.

Planetary Health Human health depends on planetary conditions and resources, as well as functioning ecosystems. Climate change, biodiversity loss, scarcity of land and freshwater, pollution and other threats are degrading these systems with profound implications for human health and wellbeing. Using an interdisciplinary approach, we will investigate the driving forces of human health and wellness in the Anthropocene with an eye on the role of ecology, evolution, planetary change, and the interconnected systems of our planet. Beyond assessing the fundamental biophysical forces acting on human health, we will additionally consider the societal values and ethical frameworks that are inherent to these issues.

Arts-Based Health Comm In this class, we will learn about and practice arts-based ethnography, digital storytelling, and comics-based research drawing from the fields of fine arts, public health, anthropology, graphic medicine, and medical Humanities/narrative medicine. We’ll study strategies for using story in all its forms to improve health outcomes at individual, community, and structural levels, the evidence for arts-based praxes in the social sciences and beyond, and we’ll collect and examine work from fine artists, disability activists, poets, painters, graphic novelists, and wherever else health-driven narratives exist—including those you will make in this class. Come prepared to read and create across many genres and explore how story is the vehicle for transformation: of us, of our systems, and of our wellbeing.  /Jessamyn Smyth is a writer, digital artist, and professor of interdisciplinary Humanities and public health. She has particular interest in medical Humanities, arts-based ethnography, and public health communication./

Measurement Matters in Population Health: Approaches, Assumptions, and Applications How many people died last year? What country has the best health system? Answering these questions involves myriad data decisions and value judgments, yet such information is usually presented as objective assessments. With this course, we will explore how health is measured at the population level and critically examine data challenges and assumptions that underpin common health metrics such as life expectancy, disease estimates, and health service indicators. Topics covered also include issues of data bias and representation, sociopolitical dimensions of population health measurement and target setting, and onward implications of what (and what does not) get measured.

Delving into Data: Finding, Analyzing, and Summarizing Public Health Data Have you been curious how public health practitioners find and use data? Are you interested in public health and eager to learn how to find and analyze health data? In this course, we will cover what health data is and where to find it, how to analyze and visualize health data using Microsoft Excel and R, identify common problems with health data and how to solve them. By the end of this course, you will be well versed in all thing health data, as well as have first-hand experience doing your own public health research project.   Ruby Barnard-Mayers is an epidemiologist trained in using novel epidemiologic methods in maternal and child health research. She grew up in Vermont and is currently earning her doctorate in Epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health. She holds an MPH from Boston University in Epidemiology & Biostatistics and Maternal & Child Health as well as a B.A from Grinnell College in Mathematics & Statistics and Anthropology./

Global Maternal and Child Health* In recent years, increased knowledge and action in global health have led to dramatic reductions in maternal and child mortality, yet significant challenges remain. In this course we will explore themes in global maternal child health including reproductive health, perinatal and newborn health, infectious disease, malnutrition, childhood development, humanitarian emergencies and migration.  We will apply a social determinants framework to understand health inequities and explore strategies for strengthening  health systems.  Students will work in groups to develop a proposal for a maternal child health intervention, with a focus on gaining practical skills in data analysis and proposal writing. Kim Wilson, MD, MPH is an academic pediatrician and global health professional from Boston with a focus on improving the health of underserved communities in the U.S. and globally.  She has worked in Latin America and East Africa with programs to promote maternal and newborn survival, child health, and early childhood development./

Financing Universal Heath Coverage in Low Resource Settings: Protecting the Poor Through Equity-Driven Approaches Global health crises like pandemics tend to expose key gaps in equitable access to health services. It is often the poorest and most disenfranchised communities who suffer the greatest consequences of falling ill. In this course, we will examine the question: “who pays, and who receives healthcare?” We will explore the ways in which equitable access to healthcare is organized and financed in low and middle-income countries. We will analyze and discuss the benefits and drawbacks to using different health financing strategies to achieve universal health coverage (UHC). Students will have the opportunity to utilize real-world scenarios and data to propose equitable health financing reforms for UHC in resource poor settings. ECON 0155 is recommended but not required.  Zoe Isaacs leads the health financing team at Partners in Health (PIH). She has spent over five years living and working in Latin America and the Caribbean. Zoe holds an MSc in Health Policy Planning and Finance from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a BA in International and Global Studies from Middlebury College./

Pandemic Preparedness and Response This course will examine the history of pandemics, beginning with the 1918 Influenza. The class will look at how individual countries were prepared for Covid19 (or not), and how they responded, how the global system for pandemic preparedness under the guidance of the WHO performed, and whether the lessons we drew from the Covid19 Pandemic experience will leave us better prepared for the next pandemic. In the case of the US, we will look at differential health outcomes for marginalized and other communities. Additional topics in this course will include healthcare ethics in the face of rationing; ethics and the global allocation of vaccines and therapeutics; global treaties governing pharmaceutical patents; and how politics plays a role in the dissemination of information vital for country response to outbreaks of concern, epidemics, and pandemics.

Biosecurity, Chemical and Biological weapons Nonproliferation, and Pandemic Prevention In this course, we will review and discuss the history of biological and chemical weapons nonproliferation, biosecurity policy (focusing on the US and multilateral policy), and pandemic prevention efforts both pre- and post-COVID. Through understanding the biochemical and immunological mechanisms of action of biothreats and toxins, we will categorize pandemic and bioweapon response and mitigation strategies, and identify gaps in current preparedness and policy. We will evaluate the risk potential of new biotechnologies, including risk assessment methodologies, and apply these to proposed dual-use technologies and research.  Dr. Allison Berke is the Chemical and Biological Weapons Non-Proliferation Program Director at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, CA. Her work focuses on biosecurity policy, evaluating and regulating biotechnologies, and computational approaches to monitoring emerging biothreats./

Empowerment or Exploitation? Engaging Communities in the Pursuit of Better Health Sustained progress in global health and development requires the participation of target communities. Vaccines, for instance, will themselves do no good if caregivers refuse to vaccinate their children. In this course, we will explore the role of communities in the pursuit of improved health – a state often pre-defined by outsiders without direct community consultation. The course will focus specifically on the evolving role of community health workers within global health and development agendas, emphasizing therein the fine line we tread (as global health policy makers, implementers, and donors) between empowering and exploiting the communities on whose participation our success relies. (not open to students who have taken INTD 1224) Since 2009, Harriet has studied, supported, and advocated for community health systems across the globe, focusing on community health policy, design, implementation, and financing. In her current role on the global malaria team at Clinton Health Access Initiative, Harriet supports countries across sub-Saharan Africa, the Greater Mekong Sub-region, and Mesoamerica to holistically engage community health worker networks as key partners in the fight to eliminate malaria and improve access to basic health services. Harriet holds a Master of Science in Public Health with a focus on community health systems from Johns Hopkins University, and a BA in anthropology from Middlebury College./

Allison Berke

David Torres

Harriet Napier

Kim Wilson

Nancy Fullman

Pam Berenbaum

Richard Finkelstein

Ruby Barnard-Mayers

Sam Byrne

William Hathaway

Zoe Isaacs

Read 57 reviews for Global Health courses at Middlebury College. Find the best Global Health professors and courses.  Discover your new major today!

I really enjoyed taking this course with Professor Torres! He is clearly passionate about the field of Global Health, and really made the class enjoyable. This course required lots of readings for discussions, and we had several group projects and presentations. Overall, I definitely enjoyed this class and it helped push me towards declaring a minor in Global Health!

This course was pretty relaxed and Professor Torres is clearly passionate and very knowledgable on the subject. I learned a lot about how non-profits work and what is needed for their mission to be successful. Prof Torres does not use lecture slides, the class is discussion based. His assignments required time but were not overly difficult. The exam was take-home. 

Professor Finkelstein is obviously very passionate and knowledgeable about this topic. His unique background allows for really interesting first-hand accounts and numerous guest speakers further contributed to this. The major assignments were mostly papers (with one presentation) but were very reflection focused and easily graded. 