Final Exam (10%) ---------------------------------------------------
May 16
Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)
A wide array of
voluntary, non-profit organizations contribute to improving community
health, from small neighborhood groups to large worldwide organizations
such as the International Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies. Choose an
NGO, and prepare a brief oral presentation about it focusing on the
following questions: Who is the organization? What is their mission?
What activities do they carry out? How large is their annual budget, and
where do they get their funding? How effective are they?
Movie Review
Choose a movie that illustrates one or more
significant family & community health issues. The health issues
should be a major focus of the movie, not just incidental.
Briefly
summarize the plot of the movie (one paragraph). Identify the family
& community health issues illustrated by the film. Discuss how the
film deals with the issues, its message about them, and its
effectiveness in conveying its message. Total length should be 1-2
pages.
Here are a few possible movie choices:
- Stanley & Iris
- The Insider
- Cider House Rules
- Ma Vie En Rose
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
- Philadelphia
- Requiem for a Dream
- El Norte
- Rainman
- Central Station
- Coal Miner's Daugher
- Argent de Poche (Small Change)
- Hush
- What's Eating Gilbert Grape
- One True Thing
- Transamerica
Social Problems with Health Consequences
In one of the readings for this course -- "Infant Mortality in Europe: Implications for the US" --
Marsden Wagner says:
"Infant mortality is not a health problem. Infant mortality is a
social problem with health consequences."
He argues that the US would be more successful in reducing our infant mortality rate if we
paid more attention to the social issues that underlie many infant deaths (e.g. poverty,
unintended pregnancy), rather than focusing on infant mortality as purely a medical issue
to be addressed by medical technology. A similar argument could be made about almost all
of the health issues discussed this semester.
Re-read Marsden Wagner’s essay. Then choose a health issue other than infant mortality,
and write an essay of your own (2-3 pages) that explains why we should address it not as
a health problem, but as a social problem with health consequences. Appropriate health issues
include childhood lead poisoning, dental caries, asthma, eating disorders, diabetes,
lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, and many other conditions.
If you can’t think of an opening line for your essay, try this one:
"_________ is not a
health problem; it is a social problem with health consequences."
Midterm Quiz
This short test, given during March, covers
the first half of the course. It includes two types of questions. One
asks for definitions of important terms or examples of community health
issues. Others will ask for examples related to key family health
problems and their relationship to the community.
Funding Proposal
The Applegate-Sherman Fund, a charitable
foundation based in Rensselaer, NY, is offering grants of up to $50,000
to support community-based efforts to address the following health
issues: heart disease, tobacco, adolescent pregnancy, breastfeeding,
childhood lead poisoning, and pedestrian injuries.
Funding can
support efforts anywhere in the world. Only coalitions involving both
governmental and private-sector agencies are eligible to apply. Choose
one of these issues as your focus, and prepare a short proposal (~2
pages) to send to the foundation, outlining your plans. Briefly address
each of the following points in your proposal:
- scope and nature of the problem
- its importance to community health
- your proposed plan to address the problem
- organizations involved in your coalition
- brief budget (total = $50,000)
Note: for this
amount of money, you may need to choose one or two aspects of the
problem, rather than trying to launch a comprehensive campaign.
Also Note: unfortunately, the money we're talking about is
all fake. :-(
Final Exam
This short test, given during finals period,
covers the second half of the course. It includes two types of
questions. One asks for definitions of important terms discussed in
class and/or reading assignments. Others will be short-answer questions
that ask you to think about a health issue from a community perspective.
