This unit of study introduces students to the ethical, social and legal issues that underlie a wide range of biotechnologies, including: genetics, genomics, human reproduction, stem cell research, nanotechnology and emerging biotechnologies. Key concepts influencing debates in this area are covered, such as 'procreative beneficence', personhood, risk, consent, public engagement, and property in the body (including gene patenting). Topical case studies are included to keep up with recent developments in the field. Students will explore the ethical limits to research and knowledge in biotechnology.

This unit of study critically examines research ethics in its wider context, from structuring research to its dissemination. It explores the ethical underpinnings of a variety of research methods and their uses in humans and non-human animals including the justifications for engaging in research, key concepts in research ethics and research integrity. The unit also reviews the history of research and the impact of research abuse on participants, both human and animal.

This unit provides students with an overview of the ethical and political issues that underlie public health and public health research. The unit introduces key concepts in public health ethics including liberty, utility, justice, paternalism, solidarity and reciprocity, and introduces students to different ways of reasoning about the ethics of public health. A critical history of public health and an examination of public health law provide important context. Students also explore the ethical dimensions of central public health problems, including modifying lifestyles, managing communicable diseases, screening and overdiagnosis, researching communities, responding to global health challenges and using evidence. Throughout, the emphasis is on learning to make sound arguments about the ethical aspects of public health policy, practice and research. Most learning occurs in the context of five teaching intensives, which are highly interactive and focus on the development and application of reasoning skills.

This unit will provide students with an overview of the ethical issues that underlie the delivery of healthcare. Students will explore: major conceptual models for ethical reasoning in the clinical context; key ethical concepts in the clinical encounter (such as consent, professionalism and confidentiality); major contexts in which ethical issues arise in clinical practice; and the role of clinical ethics consultation. The unit will also consider specific issues and populations within clinical practice, such as ethical aspects of healthcare at the beginning and end of life. Learning activities will include lectures (in an intensive format), facilitated discussion, case study activities, readings and weekly discussions.

This unit of study introduces students to human research ethics in its wider context. It explores the ethical underpinnings of the research endeavour including the justifications for engaging in research and research integrity. The unit also reviews the history of research and the impact of research abuse on human participants.

This unit introduces the concept of clinical epidemiology and provides students with core skills in clinical epidemiology at an introductory level. Topics covered include asking and answering clinical questions; basic and accessible literature searching techniques; study designs used in clinical epidemiological research; confounding and effect modification; sources of bias; interpretation of results including odds ratios, relative risks, confidence intervals and p values; applicability of results to individual patients; critical appraisal of clinical epidemiological research literature used to answer questions of therapy (RCTs and systematic reviews), harm, prognosis, diagnosis, screening and clinical guidelines; and translating research into practice.

Students will learn how to formulate a searchable question; the pros and cons of different information sources; how to structure an electronic database search; important fields in MEDLINE; useful practical tips for searching MEDLINE; methodological filters, journal citation reports, bibliometrics, and how to organise and manage references. The assignment requires students to demonstrate their search skills for clinical problems (marks allocated for how many relevant articles found, the content terms used, the methodological terms used, and the databases searched) and to demonstrate skills in the use of information tracking interfaces and Endnote.

The unit has four major content areas delivered as modules covering:- An understanding Q&S in Healthcare; Professional and ethical practice; Understanding systems and the effect of complexity on patient care; Improving Healthcare. At the end of the unit students will: understand the background to quality and safety in health care, from Australian and international perspectives; understand the nature of health care error including the methods of error detection and monitoring, and quality indicators; understand the role of good communication and other professional responsibilities in quality and safety in healthcare; have developed an understanding of clinical governance, accountability and systems management; have considered methods for improving healthcare such as getting research into practice, clinical practice guidelines and clinical practice improvement. This unit consists of online discussions and activities based around key provided readings and other resources.

Students will learn how to critically appraise a review of the effectiveness of an intervention; how to do a meta-analysis; how to weigh up benefits and harms (applicability); how to avoid misleading meta-analyses and how to find or do better systematic reviews. At the end of this unit, participants should be able to: search for systematic reviews; critically appraise reviews of randomised controlled trials, do a meta-analysis of randomised trials using available software; and use meta-analytic methods for weighing up benefits and harms of an intervention in individual patient management and practice policy development. The assignment task involves: outlining a clinical or health policy decision; identifying a systematic review of randomized controlled trials; critically appraising a systematic review of randomized controlled trials; consideration of the applicability of the evidence and what additional information is required to better inform decision making.

The aim of this unit is to critically appraise and apply, at an advanced level, the best evidence on systematic reviews. This unit extends beyond the 'Introduction to Systematic Reviews' unit by exploring in-depth important issues around systematic reviews. At the end of the unit, students should be able to understand the advantages of individual participant data meta-analyses; critically appraise a review of observational studies; understand differences in systematic review of observational studies compared with randomized trials; understand the potential pitfalls of meta-regression; perform and interpret a sub-group and meta-regression analysis; analyse continuous data and understand the methods by which missing data can be imputed; and understand the common problems in meta-analysis of continuous data. The seminar sessions are interactive and based on discussion of reading material. Two sessions are based in the computer lab.

This project unit provides an opportunity to apply skills learnt in other units and further develop knowledge and skills by undertaking a systematic review (ideally including a meta analysis) in a topic area nominated by the student. The student will be supported by a supervisor allocated to them, but the project will be student-driven. The assessment task is to undertake a systematic review and present the review in the form of a paper suitable for submission to a peer reviewed scientific, academic or professional journal.

This unit introduces the concepts and methodology used in genetic epidemiology. It begins with a refresher on molecular biology and genetics, followed by a survey of commonly used study designs. Practical implementation and statistical analysis of these studies will then be discussed. The unit concludes by exploring potential clinical and societal ramifications. By the end of this unit students will be able to critically appraise genetic epidemiological studies and act as informed research collaborators.

This unit aims to teach students the principles of research integrity in writing for medical journals, to guide them to resources to improve their conference abstract and manuscript writing and submission to a peer reviewed journal. Students will learn about reporting guidelines, common pitfalls in writing and presenting research, improving tables and figures for manuscripts, writing cover letters and responding to reviewer's comments. Students will learn skills needed to act as a peer-reviewer.

In this unit of study, the student will develop his/her own research proposal, to a standard suitable for a peer-reviewed granting body. Each section of a grant proposal (Aims, Background/Significance, Methods, Analysis) will be discussed, with the student presenting and refining the corresponding section of his/her own proposal in a synchronous online workshop setting. This will then be complemented by online presentations from experienced researchers on the practical aspects of clinical research, followed by synchronous online class discussion. Topics include: observational studies, randomized controlled trials, diagnostic test evaluation, qualitative studies, funding application, ethical approval, publication strategies and grant administration. The unit will conclude with a one-day, face- to-face, mandatory workshop- where students will learn about budgeting, peer review of research grants, and present their completed research proposal.

Generally speaking, implementation of research evidence into clinical practice is slow and incomplete. For instance, about 30% of patients do not receive treatment of proven effectiveness, while 20% receive treatments which are unnecessary or potentially harmful. This unit of study aims to help you translate research findings into clinical practice in your workplace. Before the first workshop, you will be asked to identify an evidence-practice gap in your area of clinical practice. In the workshop we will provide you with a theoretical framework for implementing change in clinical practice, and work through barriers to, and enablers for change. We will then review effective strategies for change implementation, and look at some real life examples. We will discuss methods for measuring the effectiveness of change implementation, and for identifying problems during implementation. By the end of this unit of study, you will be able to plan and carry out a knowledge implementation project.
NB. Students enrolled in this unit of study should have had some work experience in the health care setting.

During this unit students will evaluate guideline development; critical appraisal of guidelines; introduction to implementation and evaluation of guidelines; involvement of consumers in guidelines; examination of hospital-based and community-based guidelines. Group and individual critical appraisal work is required.

The aim of this unit is to enable students to appraise patient-reported outcome measures (PROM) and incorporate them into clinical research. PROMs include: symptoms, side-effects, health-related quality of life, satisfaction and preferences. Topics include: definitions, structure and functions of PROMs; item-generation and selection; questionnaire design; assessing validity, reliability and responsiveness to clinically important change; utilities and preferences; developing and appraising studies using PROMs. The online sessions comprise six lectures outlining the principles, with illustrative examples (approx 90 minutes per lecture), plus a series of 5 related quizzes (approx 30 minutes). The written assignment may be one of four options (student's choice): 1) a protocol for the development and validation of a new PROM; 2) a protocol for the revalidation of an existing PROM in a population in which it has not previously been validated; 3) a protocol for application of an existing PROM for a specific purpose in a specific patient population and clinical context; 4) an appraisal of the application of an existing PROM as an outcome in a clinical study.

This unit covers statistical analysis techniques that are commonly required for analysing data that arise from clinical or epidemiological studies. Students will gain hands on experience applying model-building strategies and fitting advanced statistical models. In particular, students will learn a statistical software package called Stata, how to handle non-linear continuous variables, and how to analyse correlated data. Correlated data arise from clustered or longitudinal study designs, such as, cross-over studies, matched case-control studies, cluster randomised trials and studies involving repeated measurements. Statistical models that will be covered include fixed effects models, marginal models using Generalised Estimating Equations (GEE), and mixed effects models (also known as hierarchical or multilevel models). This unit of study focuses on data analyses using Stata and the interpretation of results.

This unit of study introduces the student to basic concepts behind diagnostic and screening tests, including: test accuracy, sources of bias in test evaluation, critical appraisal of test evaluation studies, principles and use of evidence in making decisions about population screening. After completing this unit of study, the student should have a basic understanding of contemporary issues and the methodology underlying, diagnostic and screening test evaluation and application.

This unit of study introduces the student to basic concepts behind diagnostic and screening tests, including: test accuracy, sources of bias in test evaluation, critical appraisal of test evaluation studies, principles and use of evidence in making decisions about population screening. It will then move to more advanced topics including: application of test results to individual patients, place of tests in diagnostic pathways, impact of tests on patient outcome, tests with continuous outcome, receiver-operator characteristic curves, systematic review of diagnostic tests, predictive models, monitoring, diagnostic tests in the health system, and over-diagnosis. After completing this unit of study, the student should have a comprehensive understanding of contemporary issues and the methodology underlying, diagnostic and screening test evaluation and application.

This unit provides students with an opportunity to develop a Clinical Epidemiology study proposal under supervision. The proposal will include: background to the project; project plan; project significance; justification of the project; project method; budget; and ethical implication of project. At the end of the unit, the student will be proficient in writing research proposals suitable for submission to an appropriate funding body. Student assignment involves writing a study proposal suitable for submission to a funding body. This project unit is a capstone unit and student driven. It is the responsibility of the student to identify a suitable project, in consultation with a local clinical supervisor and the unit coordinator, based upon area of interest to the student and local capacity to provide support to the student. Supervision is flexible and could include face to face meetings, email and telephone support. A minimum of three meetings are required, to be organised by the student, coinciding with the development of the project, a draft proposal and a near-final proposal. Two half-day workshops will also be held, one at the beginning and one at the end of semester.

The aim of this unit is to conduct a clinical epidemiology project and write a report on the project in the form of a paper suitable for publication. The project will involve: refining the project proposal; data collection; data analysis; and produce a report suitable for publication. At the end of the unit, the student will be proficient in conducting and writing a report of a clinical epidemiology project. The report should be suitable for publication in a peer reviewed journal. This project unit is a capstone unit and student driven. It is the responsibility of the student to identify a suitable project, in consultation with a local clinical supervisor and the unit coordinator, based upon area of interest to the student and local capacity to provide support to the student. Feasibiility is a critical criteria for selection of the topic given the tight time frame. Supervision is flexible and could include face to face meetings, email and telephone support. A minimum of three meetings are required, to be organised by the student, coinciding with the development of the project, a draft proposal and a near-final proposal. Two half-day workshops will also be held, one at the beginning and one at the end of semester.

Information technologies (IT) and systems have emerged as the primary platform to support communication, collaboration, research, decision making, and problem solving in contemporary health organisations. The essential necessity for students to acquire the fundamental knowledge and skills for applying IT effectively for a wide range of tasks is widely recognised. This is an introductory unit of study which prepares students in the Health discipline to develop the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to be competent in the use of information technology for solving a variety of problems. The main focus of this unit is on modelling and problem solving through the effective use of using IT. Students will learn how to navigate independently to solve their problems on their own, and to be capable of fully applying the power of IT tools in the service of their goals in their own health domains while not losing sight of the fundamental concepts of computing. Students are taught core skills related to general purpose computing involving a range of software tools such as spreadsheets, database management systems, internet search engine. Students will undertake practical tasks including scripting languages and building a small scale application for managing information. In addition, the course will address the issues arising from the wide-spread use of information technology in a variety of Health area.

This unit aims to provide students with an introduction to statistical concepts, their use and relevance in public health. This unit covers descriptive analyses to summarise and display data; concepts underlying statistical inference; basic statistical methods for the analysis of continuous and binary data; and statistical aspects of study design. Specific topics include: sampling; probability distributions; sampling distribution of the mean; confidence interval and significance tests for one-sample, two paired samples and two independent samples for continuous data and also binary data; correlation and simple linear regression; distribution-free methods for two paired samples, two independent samples and correlation; power and sample size estimation for simple studies; statistical aspects of study design and analysis. Students will be required to perform analyses using a calculator and will also be required to conduct analyses using statistical software (SPSS). It is expected that students spend an additional 2 hours per week preparing for their tutorials. Computing tasks are self-directed.

This unit aims to provide students with specific information on the concepts, methods and applications underpinning cancer prevention and control at population level. It is designed to address specific educational needs of students in various programs within the School of Public Health and to offer a broad-based perspective on cancer control, ranging from primary prevention, screening and early intervention, tertiary prevention and palliative care. Emphasis will be given to cancers with the greatest impact at population level and where evidence demonstrates that policies and interventions are capable of reducing cancer incidence, mortality, prolonging survival and improving quality of life. Although focusing on specific Australian conditions, the information will be presented in the context of regional and global cancer control efforts. At the completion of the unit, students will be equipped with the basic tools to design, plan, implement and evaluate cancer control programs in Australia or other countries.

This course offers a broad-based integrated perspective on chronic disease prevention. The course reviews the epidemiology of selected chronic diseases with the highest impact at population level in Australia (cardiovascular diseases; cancer; chronic lung disease; diabetes and chronic renal disease). The information will focus on Australian settings, but presented within the context of a regional perspective of chronic disease prevention.
Teaching will focus on the interrelationships between the biological and epidemiological aspects of chronic diseases, the interplay between determinants of health and chronic disease, and the balance between high risk and population based strategies for reducing disease burden, and exploring their applicability to disease prevention. Students will be involved in evaluating the effectiveness of different prevention strategies and will examine the role of health policy in developing effective and sustainable chronic disease management programs in different settings (in Australia and the region).

This unit introduces students to the methods by which evidence is translated, used and abused when governments make decisions affecting public health. Students will become familiar with the main tools used by health economists and policy analysts. The unit will emphasize the role of different forms of evidence and values for priority-setting and policy-making.
Unit technical content is unified by common themes and case studies. Students will apply methods and principles of health economics e.g. resource scarcity, opportunity cost, efficiency and equity to practical real-life examples (including specific indigenous health issues) to critically consider the role of economic evidence in health decision-making in Australia.
Students will then use policy analysis methods to critically examine the Australian health care system and decision-making in public health. The unit will pay particular attention to questions of power and equity, including the position of indigenous peoples. Finally, it will look at how evidence is framed and used in decision-making.
Teaching will make use of contemporary case studies so students learn how technical analytical tools are used in practical examples of policy development, decision-making and public debate.
The unit gives public health students an essential basic knowledge of both disciplines (health economics and health policy) and lays the groundwork for more advanced studies.

This unit examines quantitative approaches to public health and clinical decision-making. Topics of study include: decision trees and health-related utility assessment; incorporating diagnostic information in decision making; sensitivity and threshold analysis; and application of decision analysis to economic evaluation. Students gain practical skills using decision analysis software via computer practicals undertaken within Sessions 4 and 5. The assessment quiz (20%) is conducted in the first part of Session 5. Exercises are set at the end of most sessions and are reviewed at the start of the following session. Readings are also set after most sessions. Preparation time for each session is 1-2 hours.

This unit introduces the principles underpinning the design and conduct of high quality clinical trials to generate good evidence for health care decision making. The topics include clinical trial design, randomization, sample size, measures of treatment effect, methodological issues, trial protocols, and ethical principles. The unit is delivered over 2 full days via formal lectures followed by practical sessions. The unit may also be completed online.

Students will learn how to analyse data using multiple linear regression. Multiple linear regression is a powerful statistical method for analysing a continuous outcome variable with several explanatory variables. In particular, this unit will cover how to compare more than two groups, adjust for confounders, test for effect modification, calculate adjusted means, conduct appropriate model checking, and teaches strategies for selecting the 'best' regression model. Students will learn how to apply these methods using the statistical package called SAS. In this unit, each topic is covered by a one hour statistics lecture, a one hour SAS lecture, a one hour SAS practical and a one hour statistics tutorial to discuss the interpretation of the results. Each fortnight there is an exercise on the material covered in the statistics lecture. The SAS practical covers the necessary statistical computing to answer the questions for the tutorial the following week. The assignments will involve practical analysis and interpretation of a data set. This unit is the prerequiste for learning other types of regression models, such as logistic regression (PUBH5212) and survival analysis (PUBH5213).

In this unit the biostatistical concepts covered in earlier units are extended to cover analysis of epidemiological studies where the outcome variable is categorical. Topics of study include: testing for trend in a 2 x r contingency table; the Mantel-Haenszel test for the combination of several 2 x 2 tables, with estimation of the combined odds ratio and confidence limits; multiple logistic regression; Poisson regression; modelling strategy. The assignments will involve practical analysis and interpretation of categorical data. Data analyses will be conducted using statistical software (SAS).

During this unit, students learn to analyse data from studies in which individuals are followed up until a particular event occurs, e.g. death, cure, relapse, making use of follow-up data also for those who do not experience the event. This unit covers: Kaplan-Meier life tables; logrank test to compare two or more groups; Cox's proportional hazards regression model; checking the proportional hazards assumption; and sample size calculations for survival studies. For each topic participants are given some material to read beforehand. This is followed by a lecture, then participants are given one or two exercises to do for the following week. These exercises are discussed in the tutorial at the next session before moving on to the next topic. That is, in most weeks the first hour is a tutorial and the lecture is given in the second hour. Participants are expected to run SAS programs in their own time. Preparation time for each session is 2-3 hours. The assignments both involve use of SAS to analyse a set of survival data.

This unit introduces the topic of linked health data analysis. It will usually run in late June and late November. The topic is a very specialised one and will not be relevant to most MPH students. The modular structure of the unit provides students with a theoretical grounding in the classroom on each topic, followed by hands-on practical exercises in the computing lab using de-identified linked NSW data files. The computing component assumes a basic familiarity with SAS computing syntax and methods of basic statistical analysis of fixed-format data files. Contents include: an overview of the theory of data linkage methods and features of comprehensive data linkage systems, sufficient to know the sources and limitations of linked health data sets; design of linked data studies using epidemiological principles; construction of numerators and denominators used for the analysis of disease trends and health care utilisation and outcomes; assessment of the accuracy and reliability of data sources; data linkage checking and quality assurance of the study process; basic statistical analyses of linked longitudinal health data; manipulation of large linked data files; writing syntax to prepare linked data files for analysis, derive exposure and outcome variables, relate numerators and denominators and produce results from statistical procedures at an introductory to intermediate level. The main assignment involves the analysis of NSW linked data, which can be done only in the School of Public Health Computer Lab, and is due 10 days after the end of the unit.

This unit of study is intended for students who have completed Epidemiology Methods and Uses (or an equivalent unit of study) at a credit or higher level. It is designed to provide students with an opportunity to consolidate critical appraisal skills, to acquire the practical knowledge and skills needed to design epidemiological research, and to extend students' theoretical knowledge of epidemiology beyond basic principles.

This unit aims to develop students' knowledge and skills of economic evaluation as an aid to priority setting in health care. This unit covers: principles of economic evaluation; critical appraisal guidelines; measuring and valuing benefits; methods of costing; modeling in economic evaluation. The workshops consist of interactive lectures and class exercises.

Translational Health introduces the main existing translational methods and models in healthcare, most of which focus on 'knowledge translation' and 'bringing evidence into practice', i.e. on moving results from the basic sciences through clinical and public health science and guidelines into clinical and public health decision and policy making. Most of these models diagnose the problem of 'loss in translation' in terms of institutional and professional barriers and blocks along the translation pathways. While acknowledging these, Translational Health focuses on the modelling method - the 'language' and 'vocabulary' - most likely to perform the translation task effectively in relation to patient-centered practice. The technique underlying the method is Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (in contrast to conventional Decision Analysis) and the template for its practical implementation is the Annalisa 2.0+ software. It is shown how high quality clinical and public health decision making needs to be based on 'values translation' as well as 'knowledge translation'. And how the approach can facilitate the desirable 'backwards translation' to ensure research is practice-relevant in both content and format. Students choose from a set of topics within which to pursue the principles, follow empirical examples and develop their own analyses in a practicum.

This one-semester online unit teaches students about the principles of injury epidemiology, prevention and control. It provides a basis for the assessment and investigation of injury issues and the development, implementation and evaluation of injury prevention programs. The unit will cover: injury measurement and classification (descriptive methods); risk factor identification (analytic methods); evidence-based interventions for injury prevention; priority setting in injury control; injury prevention policy; strategies in injury control; implementing strategies in injury control; program evaluation in injury prevention; injury and Indigenous Australians and an international perspective on injury. During this unit, students will: gain an understanding of the epidemiology of injury, including the burden of injury, injury surveillance, methods for estimating the frequency and severity of injury, and methods for identifying risk factors; gain an understanding of the theories underpinning injury prevention and illustrate their application; develop an appreciation of the process of priority setting in injury, the design and implementation of injury prevention interventions, and the principles and conduct of evaluations.

In this unit, students will develop a critical awareness of the determinants of effective communication, particularly in relation to health risks to the individual and to society. The first half covers individual health risk communication in clinical settings, including: theories of health communication, patient centred care and shared decision making; evidence-based communication skills; research paradigms including interaction analysis; cross-cultural communication in health care; discussing prognosis and informed consent. The second half explores risk communication for public health. We teach theories of risk perception and communication with particular application to public health incident responses. We give practical guides to media messages, risk message framing, public engagement, traditional and social media, and the ethical aspects of public communication. The unit offers students the opportunity to learn from outstanding guest lecturers who work in these areas and interactive opportunities for students to try their skills in risk communication and decision making.

This unit of study provides a comprehensive introduction to qualitative inquiry in health. It is designed for beginners and people who want an advanced-level introduction. Over the course of the unit we will address: What is qualitative research? How is it different from quantitative research? What is its history? What research problems can it address? How do I design a qualitative study? What are the different (and best) ways to generate data? How do you analyse qualitative data? Is methodology different to method? What are ontology and epistemology? What is reflexivity (and aren't qualitative researchers biased)? What are the ethical issues? What is good quality qualitative research? Can I generalise qualitative findings? You will get practical experience and skills through carrying out an observation, participating in a focus group, conducting an interview, analysing data, arguing for qualitative research in health, and appraising the quality of published literature. In both workshops you will meet working qualitative researchers and hear about their projects. This advanced unit will show you a new way of thinking critically about research and researching, and give you the skills and confidence to begin evaluating and doing qualitative research for yourself.

Qualitative methodologies are historical traditions and systems for planning and justifying research methods. This intermediate unit assumes a basic understanding of qualitative research and focuses on qualitative methodologies. Qualitative methodologies are informed by theories from sociology, anthropology, philosophy and other disciplines. They shape the research questions, objectives, design and outcome of a qualitative study. This course begins with general principles of qualitative methodology and study design. We examine several qualitative methodologies in detail, including: narrative inquiry, community based participatory research, ethnography, grounded theory, arts-based, and qualitative synthesis. We consider their historical and theoretical roots, the research practices they encourage, and their current status. The final session considers how we can use methodologies as resources rather than recipes, maintaining both flexibility and coherence in our study designs.