Advancing Health Equity (POPH90323)

Overview

Fees	Look up fees

This subject is delivered fully online.

Health equity is the fair and just opportunity for all individuals to attain their highest level of health. It is widely acknowledged as a target for which health organisations of all sizes (from local to global) should be aiming. This practical subject will explain the theories and frameworks that underpin the concept of health equity and will allow students to develop a set of skills and tools to pursue health equity in a range of organisational and other settings. Realising structures and systems that allow all people to attain their full potential for health and wellbeing involves methodically identifying and eliminating inequities resulting from the structural determinants, social norms, and institutional processes that shape the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, play, and age. This subject examines not only the determinants of inequity and how these are amplified by structural barriers to produce poor public health outcomes but will also explore the possibilities for transformation to achieve health equity. This interdisciplinary and multi-method subject incorporates insights from a range of disciplines and draws on qualitative and quantitative methodologies using contemporary examples. In this subject, students will learn how health inequalities are generated and will develop skills and strategies to address the health equity challenges present in their work contexts and beyond.

Intended learning outcomes

On completion of this subject, students should be able to:

critically analyse the social, structural, and commercial factors shaping health and health inequalities and how these relate to health equity challenges in contemporary public health practice;
apply an intersectional lens when analysing contemporary inequalities, which demonstrates understanding of the ways in which attributes such as disability, gender, race, ethnicity, and Indigeneity intersect with each other and corresponding forms of discrimination to produce and reproduce disadvantage and privilege;
synthesise epidemiological evidence and data associated with a broad array of political, economic, geographical, historical factors to improve measuring health equity outcomes;
critically assess and articulate the health equity challenges posed by data science and how principles of fairness, accountability, and transparency are necessary for the development and deployment of data science applications in healthcare;
select and apply the most appropriate methods for working with stakeholders to address health equity challenges and develop solutions;
critically evaluate, adapt, and apply the best tools from relevant health equity frameworks and toolkits to local contexts and public health practice.

Generic skills

critical thinking and analysis;
finding, evaluating, and using relevant information;
problem-solving;
written communication;
oral communication;
persuasion and argumentation.

Last updated: 14 April 2025