Social Inequities and Health Concentration
The importance of reducing health inequities has emerged as an imperative for health scholars, policy makers and practitioners both within Canada and globally. Increasingly, health inequities are being understood within a conceptual framework that foregrounds the role of structural factors and accounts for intersecting axes of oppression and privilege. Despite a substantial evidence base documenting social inequities and health, there are major gaps in our understanding of the pathways and mechanisms whereby health inequities are produced. Thus, there is limited information on which to base development of effective prevention and intervention policies and programs that will reduce these inequities.
The goal of the Social Inequities and Health concentration is to prepare MPH students for critical and reflexive research and practice that addresses health inequities related to poverty, racism, colonialism, sexism and other forms of structural violence. Upon completion of the concentration, learners will have a commitment and capacity to advance theory, research, and practice that explains why systemic social inequities persist and how best to reduce their effects on population health.
Social Inequities and Health Requirements
In addition to the core requirements, students must complete the following courses:
All of:
- HSCI 807-3 Researching Health Inequities
- HSCI 815-3 Concepts of Population and Public Health Practice
- HSCI 835-3 Social and Behavioral Contexts of Health and Disease
- HSCI 838-3 Theorizing Social Inequities and Health
- HSCI 839-3 Strategies for Reducing Health Inequities
and one of
- HSCI 824-3 Comparative Health Care Systems
- HSCI 827-3 Analysis of the Canadian Health Care System
and one of
- HSCI 822-3 Globalization and Health
- HSCI 823-3 Health, Gender and Development
- HSCI 829-3 Health Policy Making in a Global Context
- HSCI 891-3 Special Topics in Health Sciences*
- SA 855-3 Advanced Quantitative Methods
*when offered as Exploring Social Locations: Women’s Health and Policy in Canada
With the approval of their senior supervisor and the Graduate Program Director, students can choose to replace this requirement with an elective course offered by another department or faculty.
One additional elective course from HSCI course offerings or from relevant course offerings in other faculties and departments with permission of the senior supervisor and Graduate Program Director.
