Integration of Science and Practice P6070

COURSE DESCRIPTION The different studios in the Mailman Core teach a set of foundational perspectives, knowledge, and skills. But the practice of public health requires applying this education in a context characterized by uncertainty, risk, competing interests, and conflicting values. The Integration of Science and Practice (ISP) uses case studies of actual events to help students analyze the complicated nature of public health practice. On the one hand, the course immerses students in the complex arena of public health decision-making and debate, placing them in the role of stakeholders and policy-makers who must marshal both their core knowledge and disciplinary perspectives to explore different options and create and justify interdisciplinary responses to public health challenges. On the other hand, the cases also provide an opportunity to identify crosscutting themes and questions. The cases serve as archive of sorts, a library of examples to draw on as points of comparison when they encounter similar problems and issues in other classes or in the course of their careers. PREREQUISITES None. Concurrent enrollment in the Mailman School Core. COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES Students who successfully complete this course will be able to: Select among potential responses to a public health problem Propose a plan of action to address a public health problem Identify knowledge sources and knowledge gaps when proposing a course of action Integrate analytical and qualitative skills to draw on available evidence and identify knowledge gaps Synthesize information from multiple sources to propose public health interventions Synthesize empirical evidence to support a course of action Integrate alternative, divergent, or contradictory ideas and perspectives to public health action Collaborate with colleagues with different perspectives and expertise to address public health challenges Reinforce active listening skills as demonstrated by response to and further development of ideas presented by others Weigh the feasibility of a course of action using experience, past studies and experts opinions.

Mailman School of Public Health

Fall 2013

ASSESSMENT AND GRADING POLICY ISP is a pass/fail course. Far from suggesting that the course therefore is of minimal value or rigor, we hope instead that this grading schema will help students focus less on the final outcome of their grade and more on the process of skill development in professional, cognitive, and interpersonal domains. Students will be assessed using a rubric (available during Session 1) that helps to track development in a variety of areas. Student grades will be based on: Participation in class (see rubric) ..................................... 25% Group policy memo ...........................................................25% Individual policy memo35% Peer feedback ..................................................................... 15% COURSE REQUIREMENTS Participation is based on attendance and contribution to class discussions. Students are expected to arrive on time, have read each case carefully at least once (twice is strongly recommended), and to be fully engaged in all aspects of the class discussion and activities. Use of computers and phones/handheld devices in a manner unrelated to discussion is not permitted. You will collaboratively develop a rubric for what effective and constructive participation looks like. This is the tool your faculty member and TA will use to assess your participation with written comments at the end of the semester. In order to retrieve the cases for Session 6 (Merck & Co, Inc.) students are required to log into their Coursepack site at the Harvard Business School Publishing site (https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/access/20280765). Course handbook: Booth, et al. (2008.) The craft of research. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Available at the Columbia University Medical Center Bookstore and through library reserves. Students should bring laptops to each of the Policy Memo sessions (Sessions 7, 9, and 11) to submit their policy memo assignments to the course wiki. COURSE STRUCTURE The ISP will combine case-based learning and discussion and writing policy memos. Case studies Students will explore six case studies throughout the semester. Policy memos (for more detailed information, please see below in Course Schedule) Students will write two policy memos during the semester. The first will be a group memo, developed in stages over the course of the semester and presented via the course wiki; the second will be written individually. Instruction on writing policy memos will be provided via VoiceThread (VT) tutorial (https://voicethread.com/share/4718082/) and during Session 5 of the course. We recommend that you review the VT prior to the start of the semester and then again when it comes time to begin work on the first memo.

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MAILMAN SCHOOL POLICIES AND EXPECTATIONS Students and faculty have a shared commitment to the Schools mission, values and oath. http://mailman.columbia.edu/about-us/school-mission/ Academic Integrity Students are required to adhere to the Mailman School Honor Code, available online at http://mailman.columbia.edu/honorcode. Disability Access In order to receive disability-related academic accommodations, students must first be registered with the Office of Disability Services (ODS). Students who have, or think they may have a disability are invited to contact ODS for a confidential discussion at 212.854.2388 (V) 212.854.2378 (TTY), or by email at disability@columbia.edu. If you have already registered with ODS, please speak to your instructor to ensure that s/he has been notified of your recommended accommodations by Lillian Morales (lm31@columbia.edu), the Schools liaison to the Office of Disability Services.
COURSE SCHEDULE

Please see the lecture section of Courseworks to download the readings. Session 1 Introduction, Overview, and Mini-Case 9/11/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Describe course requirements and expectations Set norms for course Engage in discussion of mini-case Reading: The Kennedy Krieger Lead Case

Session 2 FDA, Blood Donor Policy, and the Advent of AIDS 9/18/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Compare competing priorities regarding a public health crisis Identify stakeholder motivations and desires Appreciate the limits of evidence-based actions and the ambiguity of science Reading: FDA, Blood Donor Policy, and the Advent of AIDS 9/25/13: SSGA Meeting Note: Students will meet, but with their Self, Social, Global Awareness (SSGA) sections rather than their ISP. Information about this SSGA session will be send to students in mid-September.

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Session 3 When Prevention Can Kill: Minnesota and the Smallpox Vaccine Program 10/2/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Select a course of public health action Justify decision with evidence Respond to criticism of chosen course of action Reading: When Prevention Can Kill: Minnesota and the Smallpox Vaccine Program Session 4 Community Saving or Community Threat California Policy for Ill and Elderly Inmates 10/9/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Assess impact of upstream structural factors that contribute to disparities in incarceration rates Contrast healthcare behind bars to that for the uninsured Apply a lifecourse approach to assessing risk and vulnerability Reading: Community Saving or Community Threat California Policy for Ill and Elderly Inmates NO ISP CLASS 10/16/13 A CORE/ISP FREE DAY TO STUDY FOR 10/17 EXAM Session 5 Introduction to policy memos (no case this week) 10/23/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Describe the characteristics of an effective policy memo Identify elements of policy memo Reading: While we hope that you have viewed it already (see Course Structure section, above), students are required to watch or rewatch the VoiceThread tutorial on policy memos available here: https://voicethread.com/share/4718082/ Recommended: The Craft of Research, Section III, Making a Claim and Supporting It

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Session 6 Merck & Co., Inc. 10/30/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Critique different perspectives on the roles and responsibilities that profitoriented firms can and should have in promoting global public health Explain the different factors that hinder access to medicines in developing countries: prices, health systems, lack of drug investment, others. Compare/contrast public and private sector approaches to priority setting and allocating limited budgets Identify three important differences between neglected tropical diseases and other diseases, and explain implications for public policy and private-sector decision making Explain the main risks in the drug development process Reading: Merck & Co., Inc. Session 7 Policy memos (group project) Part 1 of 3 (no case this week) 11/6/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Collaborate with groups to write options portion of memo Select appropriate to/from roles for policy memo Draft an issue statement Select appropriate evidence to develop several possible options for addressing the issue. This session will be led by TAs. Faculty are not present in the session. Assignment Due: By the end of the session each group should have drafted the following elements of their memo. 1. They should have selected who the memo is To and who it is From 2. They will craft a succinct and sufficiently challenging issue statement, 3. They will present more than one reasonable option, given the content of the case, for moving forward. These elements are due at the end of the class session. Faculty will read submitted work and provide feedback that the group should incorporate. Faculty feedback will be returned to students by the next class session on 11/13. Session 8 HIV/AIDS in Brazil 11/13/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Analyze a decentralized health system Assess impact of decentralization on care delivery Compare approaches to care delivery with special attention to pros and cons Reading: HIV/AIDS in Brazil: Delivering Prevention in a Decentralized Health System

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Session 9 Policy memos (group project) Part 2 or 3 (no case this week) 11/20/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Collaborate with groups to write options portion of memo Revise the first three memo elements based on faculty feedback Weigh the evidence for each option Develop an appropriate rationale to support one of the recommendations Prepare a brief background statement that sets up the memo Reading: None *At this point, students should also be considering their individual policy memos. Individual memos are due 12/4 (see below)* Assignment Due: By the end of the session each group should have completed their group memo. Faculty will read and provide feedback by 11/27. This session will be led by TAs. Faculty are not present in the session. NO ISP CLASS 11/27/13 THIS IS THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING Session 10 The Ethics of International Research: The Debate Over Clinical Trials of AZT to Prevent Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV in Developing Nations 12/4/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Identify ethical principles of research involving human subjects Assess the limits of global research ethics across diverse backgrounds Appreciate the cultural implications and cultural specificity of establishing ethical guidelines Reading: The Ethics of International Research Assignment Due: * Individual memos must be posted on course wiki by 9pm on 12/4/13 so that peer assignments can be made. *Groups must post finalized policy memos on course wiki by 9pm on 12/4/13.

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Session 11 Policy memos (individual project) Part 3 of 3 (no case this week) 12/11/13 Learning Objectives: Students will be able to Provide thoughtful and constructive feedback for peers Receive feedback without being defensive Engage in reflective activity to assess personal work Direct reviewers to areas self-identified as particularly problematic Appreciate the value of transparency in giving and receiving feedback Reading: Prior to class students will have read the assigned memo(s) of one of their peers and come to class prepared to provide constructive feedback as per the learning objectives. If necessary, please review the portions of the VoiceThread regarding giving and receiving comments. Assignment Due: Final individual memos must be posted on course wiki by 9pm on 1/7/14. This session will be led by TAs. Faculty are not present in the session.

Session 12 Celebration? Dec date Learning Objectives: Students will be able to TBD Experience a sense of relief Look forward with enthusiasm to the spring Faculty and students will decide on an end of semester meeting date Reading: Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace (including the lost chapters) Final submissions of individual policy memos will be due on January 7th by 9pm EST. Students are expected to work independently on these memos.

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