188.680.81
Fundamentals of Occupational Health
Location
Internet
Term
1st Term
Department
Environmental Health and Engineering
Credit(s)
3
Academic Year
2023 - 2024
Instruction Method
Asynchronous Online
Auditors Allowed
Yes, with instructor consent
Available to Undergraduate
No
Grading Restriction
Letter Grade or Pass/Fail
Course Instructor(s)
Contact Name
Frequency Schedule
Every Year
Resources
Prerequisite
Introduction to Online Learning
If you are interested in Occupational Safety and Health, this course offers an overview of the Public Health specialty.
Introduces selected important topics in occupational health through lectures, readings, and class discussion. Provides an overview of the field, providing a survey of the history of occupational health; analysis of case studies in the history of asbestos, coal workers pneumoconiosis, and uranium mining; identification of the burden of occupational injuries and diseases; application of the toxicologic paradigm to activities in occupational health; analysis of occupational health hazards; identify the association between social, behavioral, and organizational factors and health outcomes in the workplace; identification of legal, regulatory, and ethical issues; analysis and research in clinical and non-clinical emerging issues in occupational health; and an introduction to the concepts of occupational health in developing countries.
Learning Objectives
Upon successfully completing this course, students will be able to:
- Describe some of the historical aspects of occupational health and safety (OHS) and define how these events helped to shape OHS today
- Discuss the societal costs of occupational illnesses and injuries and the importance of prevention in the field of OHS
- Identify the association between social, behavioral, and organizational factors and health outcomes in the workplace
- Illustrate how the concepts of exposure assessment, the hierarchy of controls, biological monitoring, medical screening and surveillance are used to prevent occupational injuries and illnesses
- Determine the contributions of the core OHS disciplines to the multi-disciplinary OHS team
- Discuss and compare the key laws that govern the workplace and the executive agencies that are responsible for the regulation and enforcement of these laws
- Assess the complex environment in which the occupational health professional works
- Judge the rationale for health promotion/improvement activities in the workplace
- Compare and contrast OHS as practiced in the U.S. to OHS practiced in international workplaces
Methods of Assessment
This course is evaluated as follows:
- 40% Participation
- 20% Midterm
- 40% Final Paper
Enrollment Restriction
Undergrads not permitted