Elective courses

This course introduces the student to global health concepts and the network of organizations working to advance health care internationally. Emphasis for this course is on the global burden of disease and determinates of health. It will provide the student with a broad introduction to programs, systems and policies affecting global health. Students will explore facets of the global health care delivery system, health care economics, and the political process and its impact on the health of individuals and populations.

This is an interdisciplinary elective course which explores issues that directly or indirectly affect health in low- and middleresource countries. Students will learn about health care delivery systems with a focus on global/public health concepts, health promotion and risk reduction. The purpose is to broaden the student’s worldview and global perspectives of health care issues. Emphasis is on health equity among nations and for all people. Students who plan to travel for clinical or study abroad experiences are encouraged to focus their individual work on the region to which they will travel.

Given the considerable burden of cancer on patients, families, and society, this course aims to prepare students in the care of this complex collection of diseases. In this fourth-year elective, undergraduate nursing students will build upon a strong foundation of medical-surgical, psychiatric, and community health nursing to examine the spectrum of cancer, from detection and risk reduction, through active treatment and side effect management, to survivorship and end-of-life. Undergraduates and graduate students in other disciplines are welcome to take the course to understand the essential clinical issues faced by patients with cancer and their families.

Students will identify the biological and genetic determinants of cancer, examine the pertinent issues surrounding diagnosis, treatment, and supportive care, and formulate plans of care for advanced disease, psychosocial support, survival, and palliative care. Evidence-based 95 interventions will be highlighted throughout the course. Cancer care is inherently interdisciplinary; faculty and guest lectures will include several disciplines. There will be opportunities for students to engage with different teaching modalities, including experiential learning, case studies, and didactic presentations.

This course is designed to provide students with a basic understanding of the structure and function of government as it relates to the health of citizens and the practice of nursing. There is a focus on applying the concepts of leadership, advocacy and professionalism in the development of strategies for influence. Students will examine how civic engagement affects issues relevant to nursing and explore the impact of policy and politics on nursing practice.

Beginning in 1981 when the first case of HIV was diagnosed, the HIV and AIDs epidemic has dramatically altered the social, cultural, economic, political and demographic landscape worldwide. Understanding the drivers and the implications of this epidemic of individuals, families, communities and countries requires insight into the myriad of biological, socio-cultural and political factors that shape individual knowledge and behavior, access to preventive and treatment modalities, as well as the political and international responses to the epidemic. 

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the social and behavioral factors that influence the transmission and prevention of HIV and AIDs worldwide. Topics to be covered include the natural history and epidemiology of the AIDS virus, the mechanisms of transmission, high risk and vulnerable populations, social determinants of risk and vulnerability, theoretical foundations for HIV prevention programs, primary and secondary HIV prevention strategies, treatment of HIV and AIDS, and implications of HIV and AIDS for individuals, families, communities and countries.

This course explores the core concepts of palliative care as well as communication strategies, ethical situations and interdisciplinary collaboration. HS 301 (undergraduate) and HS 501 (graduate) will meet together. There are no prerequisites for either course.

This course examines gender-based violence and the skills necessary to provide advocacy services to survivors. It will introduce students to the roots of gender-based violence, the social and cultural context in which it occurs, the mental and physical health impacts, and justice and restitution frameworks.

Students will develop the skills to think critically about the local and global impact of gender-based violence and how it intersects with other forms of oppression. Students will be required to participate in experiential learning hours outside of class. Registering for two credits will require 10 hours of attendance at campus events related to gender-based violence. Registering for three credits will require 30 hours of training that provides in-depth information on issues related to sexual and intimate partner violence.

This elective seminar/survey course explores the field of study of equality, inequities and disparities in health and health care. Pursuing specific areas of theory and research in health disparities, this course provides the philosophical and theoretical foundation essential for the development of the scientist. Students will explore and critique the current state of the science in health disparities, i.e., emphasis will be placed on defining concepts, developing methods and measures, examining the analytics and contemporary research on health inequalities, disparities, inequities/equity, and social determinants of health and social justice. Students will actively engage in intellectual discourse with faculty and peers (across all levels) regarding emerging science for the evaluation, critique and analysis of health equality and disparities in the science. To this end, students will develop and evaluate and theoretical product through synthesis of relevant theoretical and research literature.

The field of study of health equality, inequalities, and disparities is inherently interdisciplinary; faculty and guest lectures include several disciplines. There will be opportunities for students to engage with different teaching modalities, including experiential learning, case studies, and didactic presentations. The course meets the elective requirements for a minor or concentration in global or health equity.

This course trains students to become standardized patients. Students will learn to provide professional feedback in standardized, real-life scenarios in order to help future health care professionals develop nursing, medical and communication skills. Students can earn a standardized patient certificate upon completion of the course, which allows them to work and get paid as standardized patients.

This is the required first course in the 3-course professional mini-certificate in Trauma-Informed Practice offered jointly by the U-M Schools of Education, Nursing and Social Work. Courses in the sequence focus on children and adolescents in schools. They involve pre-learnings, obligatory participation in a full-day Saturday workshop and completion of a final reflective or debriefing paper. This first course “Trauma Basics” can be taken alone as a free-standing elective mini-course. It is possible to elect either course 2 “Trauma-informed Practice” or course 3 “Creating and Sustaining Trauma-informed Systems” after “Trauma Basics.” However, the mini-certificate will only be awarded to those who complete all three courses.

This is course 2 of the 3-course professional mini-certificate in Trauma-informed Practice offered jointly by the U-M Schools of Education, Nursing and Social Work. The overarching objective is to prepare students in all three professions to collaborate in responding to trauma among children and adolescents in schools. Courses in the sequence involve pre-learnings, obligatory participation in a full-day Saturday workshop and completion of a final reflective or debriefing paper. It is possible to elect this course and Trauma Basics without taking course 3 “Creating and Sustaining Trauma-informed Systems.”  However, the certificate will only be awarded to those who complete all three courses.

This is course 3 of the professional mini-certificate in Trauma-informed Practice focusing on children and youth in schools. The overarching objective is to prepare nursing, education and social work students to use interprofessional and team-based strategies to achieve organizational change. Courses in the sequence focus on children and adolescents in schools. They involve pre-learnings, obligatory participation in a full-day Saturday workshop and completion of a final reflective or debriefing paper. It is possible to elect this course and Trauma Basics without taking course 3 “Creating and Sustaining Trauma-informed Systems.”  However, the certificate will only be awarded to those who complete all three courses.

This course is cross-listed with EDUC 542 and SW 542. Nursing students need to register under the HS course. The home school for this course is Nursing. The course is open to undergraduate and graduate students.

Given the considerable burden of cancer on patients, families, and society, this course aims to prepare students in the care of this complex collection of diseases. In this elective, nursing students will build upon a strong foundation of medical-surgical, psychiatric, and community health nursing to examine the spectrum of cancer, from detection and risk reduction, through active treatment and side effect management, to survivorship and end-of-life. Undergraduates and graduate students in other disciplines are welcome to take the course to understand the essential clinical issues faced by patients with cancer and their families.

Students will identify the biological and genetic determinants of cancer, examine the pertinent issues surrounding diagnosis, treatment, and supportive care, and formulate plans of care for advanced disease, psychosocial support, survival, and palliative care. Evidence-based interventions will be highlighted throughout the course. Cancer care is inherently interdisciplinary; faculty and guest lectures will include several disciplines. There will be opportunities for students to engage with different teaching modalities, including experiential learning, case studies, and didactic presentations.

This course is designed to provide students with a basic understanding of the structure and function of government as it relates to the health of citizens and the practice of nursing. There is a focus on applying the concepts of leadership, advocacy and professionalism in the development of strategies for influence. Students will examine how civic engagement affects issues relevant to nursing and explore the impact of policy and politics on nursing practice.

This course introduces the student to global health concepts and the network of organizations working to advance health care internationally. Emphasis for this course is on the global burden of disease, determinants of health and the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to health care delivery. It will provide the student with a broad introduction to programs, systems, and policies affecting global health.

Students will explore facets of the global health care delivery system, health care economics, and the political process and its impact on the health of individuals and populations.

This course introduces students to knowledge, skills and practical tools needed to successfully lead within global public health systems. Students will examine global health challenges and successes using current and emerging global health information and data; integrate leadership theories, strategies and team-based problem identification to determine opportunities to mobilize, coordinate and direct broad collaborative actions within complex global health systems; and apply leadership approaches to address health issues at a global, national and community level. 

This competency based course will provide an introduction to the role and function of the nurse involved in staff development, patient education, and a faculty role.  Following the consideration of philosophies and theories of teaching and learning, students will focus on applying the principles of curriculum and training program development for nursing through an understanding of the characteristics of learners, analysis of needs assessments, development of instructional objectives and design of a course.  A variety of both traditional and innovative teaching and evaluation methodologies will be explored as will the process of course construction.  An individual practical application assignment in designing and presenting a course module will facilitate development of knowledge and skill.

This master's-level course consists of selected topics or clinical phenomena in nursing. The topic will be announced one semester in advance.

This Ph.D.-level course is intended to enable student to identify and pursue special areas of theory and research in women's health. It may be conducted as independent study with individual students or in small groups. Thus, the particular themes addressed will vary somewhat as a function of student interest in phenomena related to the concentration.

This Ph.D.-level seminar is offered from time to time to deal with special topics not otherwise covered in the required curriculum. It may be offered by School of Nursing faculty or by visiting faculty.

This inter-professional course is designed for students in: dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and social work. The course allows health professional students to gain an understanding of how each discipline contributes to the healthcare team and the importance of effective communication and team collaboration to clinical decision making.

This course emphasizes the practical application of informatics and the impact of health IT on people, populations and health care delivery. The course is based on an interprofessional perspective of informatics theories, principles and practices and the conceptual building blocks of how data is collected, structured, exchanged, organized, indexed, manipulated, analyzed, and communicated in health and healthcare.

Population health assessment informs how decisions are made in regard to the allocation of resources to improve the health of a group. This course will introduce students to the emerging field of population health and the methods used to assess the health of a population. The course will include a review of the multiple factors that influence the health of populations. We will review methods of data collection and analysis used to determin the health status of a population. We will review processes of building collaborations and partnerships with stakeholders, and strategies for successful dissemination of needs assessment findings. 

Applied to health care, economics is a study of the efficient organization of health care delivery to achieve high quality and affordable health care and improved population health. The course is structured as a progressive application of increasingly more advanced economic theories and analysis methods to a set of topics, with each subsequent topic building upon theories and methods learned in the previous topics. The course will cover the economic theory of healthcare, economic theory and methods as they apply to health insurance, health care delivery, and population health; and economic evaluation methods in health care.

This course explores components of sociotechnical frameworks that underlie for the development, deployment, and maintenance of health information technologies. Strategies and techniques used to analyze and model health information systems requirements are emphasized. New and emerging technologies are assessed for their impact and potential strategic value to an organization.

This course examines health informatics as an empirical science with a focus on studies of information technology as it is applied in health and health care. Methods and challenges unique to the evaluation of IT will be examined. Questions about IT functions, processes and the evaluation of IT on organizational and health outcomes.

Data Science and Predictive Analytics (DSPA) is a graduate-level course that provides the general principles, concepts, techniques, tools and services for managing, harmonizing, aggregating, preprocessing, modeling, analyzing and interpreting large, multi-source, incomplete, incongruent, and heterogeneous data (Big Data). The focus will be to exposed students to common challenges related to handling Big Data and present the enormous opportunities and power associated with our ability to interrogate such complex datasets, extract useful information, derived knowledge and provide actionable forecasting. Biomedical, healthcare, and social datasets will provide context for addressing specific driving challenges. Students will learn about modern data analytic techniques and develop skills for importing and exporting, cleaning and fusing, modeling and visualizing, analyzing and synthesizing complex datasets. The collaborative design, implementation, sharing and community validation of high-throughput analytic workflows will be emphasized throughout the course.

The DSPA course aims to build computational abilities, inferential thinking, and practical skills for tackling core data scientific challenges. It explores foundational concepts in data management, processing, statistical computing, and dynamic visualization using modern programming tools and agile web-services. Concept, ideas, and protocols are illustrated through examples of real observational, simulated and research-derived datasets. Some prior quantitative experience in programming, calculus, statistics, mathematical models, or linear algebra will be necessary.

This course provides far-ranging views of core concepts for understanding and responding to mitigate adverse effects of trauma exposures on individuals, families, groups, and populations and to promote resilience, recovery and posttraumatic growth.

The practicum provides the student with opportunities to develop the diverse skills of informatics-empowered practitioners via an apprenticeship model. Students are expected to apply the knowledge and skills learned throughout the informatics curriculum in order to support the interconnected needs of individuals, institutions, and populations across the care continuum. The practicum is designed to focus on post-graduate career goals and builds on the student's interests, experiences, and personal attributes. This is an experiential course with students spending approximately 12 hours per week in a physical practicum site accessible to the student.

Epidemiology is the discipline devoted to investigating patterns, causes, and effects of disease in populations. This course will provide a general overview of the principles, concepts, and methods of epidemiologic research for students who have no prior experience in epidemiology.

Provides a general overview of the principles, concepts, and methods of data management and analysis of large sources of national health data. Students will be guided through exercises designed to provide hands-on experience with a focus on leveraging publicly available data to answer health-related questions. Students will become proficient at data management (importing/exporting, cleaning, and combining data files), analysis (basic descriptive measures and applied regression), and designing an analytic work flow in order to examine a relationship between an exposure and health outcome. Students will also be introduced to complex survey design methods, common approaches to building statistical models, and methods of risk adjustment.

An intermediate course demonstrating concepts, principals and applications of model construction and statistical inference. This course introduces students to applied inference methods in studies involving multiple variables. Specific methods that will be discussed include linear regression, analysis of variance, and different regression models. This course will emphasize the scientific formulation, analytical modeling, computational tools and applied statistical inference in diverse health-sciences problems. Data interrogation, modeling approaches, rigorous interpretation and inference will be emphasized throughout.

This is a general linear modeling course, building on HS 851, focusing on commonly employed scientific computing techniques used in health sciences. The primary aim of the course is to provide students with the necessary skills to determine appropriate use, carry out, and interpret general linear modeling. Statistical software will be used to manipulate data, fit models and perform model diagnostics.

This course will cover a number of modern analytical methods for advanced health care research. Specific focus will be on reviewing and using innovative modeling, computational, analytic and visualization techniques to address specific driving biomedical and health care applications. The course will cover the five dimensions of big data (volume, complexity, time/scale, source and management).