Credit Points 10

Legacy Code 401372

Coordinator Amit Arora Opens in new window

Description The social determinants of health recognise that the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities are influenced by a range of social factors such as wealth, education, gender, and ethnicity. Such factors determine access to and use of resources influencing health outcomes and resulting in disparities in health or health inequalities. In this unit, students will use theories and frameworks for the social determinants of health to assess the role of key social factors in affecting the health and illness of individuals and communities. Students will be introduced to the challenges of measuring and addressing the social determinants of health, and critically examine examples of programmatic and policy interventions aimed at reducing health inequalities and addressing the social determinants of health.

School Health Sciences

Discipline Public Health

Student Contribution Band HECS Band 2 10cp

Level Postgraduate Coursework Level 7 subject

Equivalent Subjects HLTH 7001 A Global Perspective on the Social Determinants of Health

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:

1. Critically appraise the social factors that determine health and illness across the lifespan.
2. Critically explain the impact of social structure and processes on health inequalities within Australia and internationally.
3. Evaluate the evidence supporting the social determinants thesis and causal pathways offered to describe the link between social factors and inequitable health outcomes.
4. Assess the capacity of the Australian and other national health systems to respond to the challenge of reducing health inequities.
5. Use evidence to investigate, analyse and synthesise the societal determinants of health and disease for effective decision-making

Subject Content

1. Health inequalities and the history of social determinants of health in relation to other key theories and approaches in population health
2. International Commission on the Social Determinants of Health and introduction to major social determinants of health
3. Health and wealth: the role of poverty, employment and education
4. Neighbourhood and the built environment
5. Social capital and community context
6. Discrimination and health
7. Life course approach
8. Indigenous health
9. Methodological challenges involved in measuring social phenomena and making causal inferences about the relationship between social factors and health
10. Policies and interventions that could address the social determinants of health