Master of Public Health

Purpose

The purpose of the qualification is to provide qualified health professionals who at the end of the qualification will have been empowered to analyse, strategise and offer solutions to challenges faced by Sub-Saharan countries including South Africa with respects to environmental and occupational Health threats and risks.

Rationale

A number of critical reports/commissions/discussion papers have informed the development of this Master in Public Health (MPH) and are outlined below.

Central to all these reports is the call for leadership within movements, governments, private entities and business, academic and research institutions, international partnerships that both directly and indirectly influence the health and well-being of people and for the prioritisation of:

• Equity and universal healthcare coverage including reviewing levels and models of health systems financing, in the face of the persistent health services inequities and the risk to global financial systems.
• Responding to the risks to the environment posed by climate change plus significant demographic shifts in age, poverty levels and internal and external rural to urban migrations both in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa.
• The changing nature of the burden of diseases with evidence of non-communicable diseases taking a huge toll on human health and wellness, while the current infectious epidemics continue to remain a challenge for the next 20-30 years.
• The risks posed to the political stability of nations by the burgeoning numbers of urban unemployed and unemployable youth plus the predicted future competition for shrinking essential physical resources necessary to support human life (water, food energy, etc) and in general physical environment conducive to well-being.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The faculty of Health Science accepts Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) as an integral part of education and academic practice. It is acknowledged that all learning has value and the faculty will endeavour to assess prior learning and award credit where relevant.

The Faculty manages RPL according to the University of Johannesburg's RPL policy, which will be applied as follows for purposes of this programme as set out in the Faculty policy:

i. Through RPL a student may gain access, or advanced placement, or recognition of status, on condition that he/she continues his/her studies at the UJ.

ii. Recognition takes place in terms of requirements and procedures applied by the faculty.

iii. RPL in the case of a student not complying with the formal entry requirements

• Is conducted after payment of the prescribed fees in accordance with the policy and guidelines of the University.
• Is based on other forms of formal, informal and non-formal learning and experience.
• Is considered only where prior learning corresponds to the required NQF-level.
• Takes place where prior learning in terms of applied competencies is relevant to the content and outcomes of the programme.
• Is considered in terms of an assessment procedure that includes a motivated recommendation by an assessment panel to the Dean's Committee of the faculty.
• Is finally decided upon by the faculty Dean's Committee.

Entry Requirements

For admission to this qualification, the learner must have either a

• Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Health, Level 8.

Or

• Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, Level 8.

Or

• Bachelor of Social Work, Level 8.

Or

• Bachelor of Physiotherapy, Level 8.

Or

• Bachelor of Nursing, Level 8.

This qualification consists of compulsory modules at Level 9 totalling 180 Credits.

• Principles and Practice of Environmental Health, 20 Credits.
• Environmental Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Research Methodologies, 20 Credits.
• Health Promotion and Health Behaviour, 16 Credits.
• Environmental Health Risk and Impact Assessment, 16 Credits.
• Emerging National and Continental Environmental Health Challenges, 16 Credits.
• African Health Systems, Health and Environmental Politics and Management, 16 Credits.
• Health Systems, Funding Models and Health Economics, 16 Credits.
• Mini-Dissertation, 60 Credits.

1. Contextualise Public Health within the region and relevant countries' health systems, with specific focus on environmental and occupational health.
2. Conduct health risk assessments and to enumerate, understand, mitigate and manage these risks.
3. Develop relevant epidemiology and research methodologies for local, regional environmental and occupational health risks.
4. Develop knowledge of related health economies.
5. Unpack environmental and occupational disasters that have local and regional relevance as learning opportunities in primary, secondary and tertiary prevention situations.
6. Take strategic decisions within the context of environmental and occupational health domains.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Contextualise occupational health systems within the region and relevant country with specific reference to occupational health.
• Contextualise environmental health systems within the region and relevant country with specific reference to environmental health.
• Evaluate and debate both occupational and environmental health systems with reference to strengths, weaknesses, core values, ethos of current health reforms and continental priorities.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Conduct health risks assessments by using applicable methodologies developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and specialist organisations.
• Use case studies of well-known disasters, their management; country and international responses to conduct risk assessments.
• Enumerate and understand risks within the relevant region/country, mitigated and managed.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

• Demonstrate the relevance of epidemiology, biostatistics and research methodologies relevant to environmental health practice.
• Apply the interpretation and critique of epidemiological research.
• Apply the formulation of a relevant research question; the choice of an appropriate study design; collection of data; the control of bias; analysing, confounding and the interpretation of results appropriately to health risks.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

• Identify models of funding health care including primary health care e.g. National Health Insurance; Social Health Insurance; Community-Based Insurance; Private Health Insurance; Tax-based, etc.
• Apply best practice on the continent and other developing countries and related health outcomes.
• Demonstrate the impact of illness on the poor and on communities.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5

• Examine Environmental Health Risk and impact assessments, current and future challenges that will affect the health of communities in Africa in detail.
• Describe the impact of the above challenges on continental demographics; water; ecosystems critical for human survival; health; food and energy; etc.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6

• Apply multidisciplinary approaches in the prevention of illness and the improvement of health within the community and for the individual.
• Develop, describe and use programmes, policies and activities to promote health and the assessment/impact thereof.
• Know, understand and apply social and behavioural aspects of health and the relationship between health behaviour, the community, society and the environment.

Integrated Assessment

The competencies and assessments to be developed in the qualification are aligned with the competencies required at Level 9.

Summative and Formative Assessment

Both types of assessment are integral components of all modules within the qualification and have application to both traditional summative and continuous assessment.

Formative Assessment refers to assessment that takes place during the process of learning and teaching. Formative assessment: Marks are not necessarily allocated, and, if allocated, not taken into consideration for admission to a summative assessment opportunity.

Summative Assessments are conducted for the purpose of making a judgment about the level of competence of learners in relation to the outcomes of a unit/module and/or qualification. The results of such formal assessment (e.g. tests, assignments, projects, presentations, creative production or traditional examinations) are expressed as a mark reflecting a pass or fail.

Integrated Assessment

Integrated assessment has application where a need exists to assure overall applied competence, to prevent disjointed learning experience and/or as a time effective assessment method. It has reference to formative, traditional summative and continuous assessment. General assessment principles and practices apply.