PUB HLTH 7113 - Environmental and Occupational Health

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2016

This course aims to introduce a range of environmental factors, which may pose a risk to the health of human populations. It also addresses risk assessment and management methods for evaluating and controlling such risks. A variety of diseases associated with exposure to common occupational and environmental factors will be discussed. In addition, there will be an overview of the historical, legislative and administrative aspects of occupational health.

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Course Details

Course Code	PUB HLTH 7113
Course	Environmental and Occupational Health
Coordinating Unit	Public Health
Term	Semester 1
Level	Postgraduate Coursework
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Online - Internal mode depending on numbers
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Restrictions	Available to Grad Cert, Grad Dip, MPH students only
Assessment	Assignments

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Professor Dino Pisaniello

Course Coordinator: Professor Dino Pisaniello
Phone: +61 8313 3571
Email: dino.pisaniello@adelaide.edu.au
Location: Level 8, Hughes Building

Learning and Teaching Team
Phone: +61 8 8313 4637
Email: postgrad_enq@adelaide.edu.au
Location: Level 7, 178 North Terrace

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .

Course Learning Outcomes

1	Describe the nature of environmental health hazards and the ways in which they impinge upon communities and occupational groups.
2	Outline the types of factors that influence the distribution of health disorders, within an exposed population.
3	Explain “risk” as a central concept in describing, evaluating and managing EOH problems.
4	Describe the roles and relationships of key disciplines (including epidemiology, toxicology, occupational and environmental hygiene and ergonomics) in the prevention, investigation and management of EOH problems.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1-4
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	2, 3
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	4
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	N/A
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	1, 4
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	4

Learning Resources

Required Resources

A CD of learning materials will be issued. Specific readings will also be provided on MyUni.

Recommended Resources

1. Cromar, N., Cameron, S., Fallowfield, H. (2004) Environmental Health in Australia and New Zealand Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 551004 6). Available for purchase from UniBooks and for loan from the Barr Smith Library

2. Department of Health and Aging, enHealth Council (2012) Environmental Health Risk Assessment – Guidelines for Assessing Human Health Risks from Environmental Hazards (Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra)
Web download for this document is at:
http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/A12B57E41EC9F326CA257BF 0001F9E7D/$File/DoHA-EHRA-120910.pdf

3. Reed S, Pisaniello D, Benke G, Burton K. (2013) Principles of Occupational Health and Hygiene – An Introduction. Allen and Unwin, ISBN 978-1-74331-129-5

Online Learning

This is an online course via MyUni. Here you will see Announcements and content related to the course as well as Discussion Boards where you will submit tutorial responses and conduct discussions with your fellow students.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

As an online course much of the contact you have with fellow students and staff will be via MyUni You will be assigned to an online discussion group to which you will submit your answers to a series of tutorial questions. Following submission of your assignment there is a period where you will have the opportunity to read, and provide constructive comment, on the work of your fellow Discussion Group members. Participants in this course have a wide range of backgrounds and this is your opportunity to gain an insight into different problem-solving perspectives (and remember your contribution is assessable).

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The University expects full-time students (i.e. those taking 12 units per semester) to devote a total of 48 hours per week to their studies. This means that, for this course, you are expected to commit approximately 12 hours per week to private study.

Lectures, demonstrations and field activities for locally-based students may be offered during the Semester, as a supplement to the online learning. Students are encouraged to attend where possible.

Learning Activities Summary

While this is an on-line course a series of supplementary lectures may be offered for locally-based students who are able to attend.

The course is set up in two major sections, namely occupational health and environmental health. Each section includes 2 tutorials and one major assignment (i.e. a total of six assignments)

There is a series of modules for students to progress through over the duration of the course.

Topics include:

1.      Hazard management, work-relatedness of disease, occupational health and safety regulation

2.      Assessment and control of chemical and physical hazards

3.      Assessment and control of musculoskeletal hazards and occupational stress

4.      Environmental health risk assessment

5.      Air, food and water quality

6.      Infectious diseases

7.      Global environmental health and climate change

Specific Course Requirements

N/A

Small Group Discovery Experience

N/A

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment Task	Assessment Type	Weighting	Learning Outcome(s) being addressed
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
Tutorial 1 - mini assignment Tutorial 2 - mini assignment	Summative Summative	10% 10%	1, 2, 4 1, 2, 4
Major OH Assignment	Summative	25%	1-4
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Tutorial 3 - mini assignment Tutorial 4 - mini assignment	Summative Summative	10% 10%	3 1, 2, 4
Major EH Assignment	Summative	25%	1-4
Participation	Formative & Summative	10%	1-4

Assessment Related Requirements

4 tutorials (each mini assignment, up to 700 words)

The tutorials provide an opportunity to respond to challenging questions and to comment on the responses of other students. The questions will be suitable for high level discussion and adult learning. They will draw upon the experiences and perspectives of the students and staff.

You are encouraged to make comments on other students responses - indeed you are required to make at least 10 comments during the semester.

Assessment Detail

Major Assignments:

There are two major assignments, one for Occupational Health and one for Environmental Health. These allow you to address an issue in depth, demonstrating advanced skills in scientific literature searching, interpretation of data and report writing.

Assignments relate to a topic of your choice, but you must use the Occupational Health Hazard management paradigm in addressing the first topic and the Environmental Health Risk Assessment paradigm in addressing the second topic.

The EnHealth 2012 document provides a very detailed description of the paradigm for Environmental Health Risk Assessment.

Occupational Health major assignment (up to 2000 words)

Environmental Health major assignment (up to 2000 words)

Submission

Extensions
All extensions for assignments must be requested, at the latest, by the last working day before the due date of submission. Extensions will generally be granted only on medical or genuine compassionate grounds. Supporting documentation must be provided at the time a student requests an extension. Without documentation, extensions will not be granted. Late requests for extension will neither be accepted nor acknowledged.

Only the Course Co-ordinator(s) may grant extensions.

Supporting documentation will be required when requesting an extension. Examples of documents that are acceptable include: a medical certificate that specifies dates of incapacity, a police report (in the case of lost computers, car & household theft etc.), a letter from a Student Counsellor, Education and Welfare Officer (EWO) or Disability Liaison Officer that provides an assessment of compassionate circumstances, or a letter from an independent external counsellor or appropriate professional able to verify the student’s situation. The length of any extension granted will take into account the period and severity of any incapacity or impact on the student. Extensions of more than 10 days will not be granted except in exceptional circumstances.

Late submission
Marks will be deducted when assignments for which no extension has been granted are handed in late.

All assignments, including those handed in late, will be assessed on their merits. In the case of late assignments where no extension has been granted, 5 percentage points of the total marks possible per day will be deducted. If an assignment that is 2 days late is awarded 65% on its merits, the mark will then be reduced by 10% (5% per day for 2 days) to 55%. If that same assignment is 4 days late, the mark will be reduced by 20% (5% per day for 4 days) to 45%, and so on.

The School of Public Health reserves the right to refuse to accept an assignment that is more than 7 days late.

Assignments submitted after the due date may not be graded in time to be returned on the listed return dates.

Students submitting examinable written work who request (and receive) an extension that takes them beyond the examination period are advised that there is no guarantee that their grades will be processed in time to meet usual University deadlines.

Resubmission
If a student is dissatisfied with an assessment grade they should follow the Student Grievance Resolution Process </student/grievance/process/>. Students who are not satisfied with a particular assessment result should raise their concerns with Course Co-ordinator(s) in the first instance. This must be done within 10 business days of the date of notification of the result. Resubmission of any assignment is subject to the agreement of the Course Co-ordinator(s) and will only be permitted for the most compelling of reasons.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

	High Distinction	Distinction	Credit	Pass	Fail
General description	Outstanding or exceptional work in terms of understanding, interpretation and presentation	A very high standard of work which demonstrates originality and insight	Demonstrates a high level of understanding and presentation and a degree of originality and insight	Satisfies the minimum requirements	Fails to satisfy the minimum requirements
Reading	Strong evidence of independent reading beyond core texts and materials	Evidence of reading beyond core texts and materials	Thorough understanding of core texts and materials	Evidence of having read core texts and materials	Very little evidence of having read any of the core texts and materials
Knowledge of topic	Demonstrates insight, awareness and understanding of deeper and more subtle aspects of the topic. Ability to consider topic in the broader context of the discipline	Evidence of an awareness and understanding of deeper and more subtle aspects of the topic	Sound knowledge of principles and concepts	Knowledge of principles and concepts at least adequate to communicate intelligently in the topic and to serve as a basis for further study	Scant knowledge of principles and concepts
Articulation of argument	Demonstrates imagination or flair. Demonstrates originality and independent thought	Evidence of imagination or flair. Evidence of originality and independent thought	Well-reasoned argument based on broad evidence	Sound argument based on evidence	Very little evidence of ability to construct coherent argument
Analytical and evaluative skills	Highly developed analytical and evaluative skills	Clear evidence of analytical and evaluative skills	Evidence of analytical and evaluative skills	Some evidence of analytical and evaluative skills	Very little evidence of analytical and evaluative skills
Problem solving	Ability to solve very challenging problems	Ability to solve non-routine problems	Ability to use and apply fundamental concepts and skills	Adequate problem-solving skills	Very little evidence of problem-solving skills
Expression and presentation appropriate to discipline	Highly developed skills in expression and presentation.	Well developed skills in expression and presentation.	Good skills in expression and presentation. Accurate and consistent acknowledge-ment of sources.	Adequate skills in expression and presentation.	Rudimentary skills in expression and presentation. Inaccurate and inconsistent acknowledgement of sources.

Final results for this course will be made available through .

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.

The 成人大片 is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The 成人大片 therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator

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