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# Master of Public Health
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Contact Information
#### Master of Public Health (MPH) Program
253.879.2618
mph@pugetsound.edu
#### Director
Benjamin Lewin
253-879-3595
*email*
blewin@pugetsound.edu
#### Administrative Coordinator
Rachel Dalton
253-879-2618
rdalton@pugetsound.edu
## Program Description
Public Health takes a transdisciplinary approach to health promotion, disease and injury prevention, and population protection. At Puget Sound, students in the Master of Public Health program learn and practice foundational skills that will prepare them for an impactful career in the field of public health. Students will have the opportunity to take classes such as Health Promotion, Global Health, Program Planning & Evaluation, and Environmental Health. Our program offers a unique experience in which students can obtain a Master of Public Health degree at a small liberal arts university, which creates a holistic, evidence-based approach to community engagement. Our program’s small student-faculty ratio ensures a learning environment in which students, faculty, and staff develop strong bonds, allowing for a personalized educational experience.
The mission of the University of Puget Sound MPH program is to prepare culturally responsive graduates who promote health equity and community wellness, and work to prevent injury and illness. The program fosters students to develop a passion for life-long education, research, and public health practice that is transdisciplinary, translational, and undergirded by active critical reflection. Graduates employ a diverse set of theoretical orientations in parallel with multiple sources of evidence to make sound professional judgments, resulting in science-based and creative solutions to the challenges of public health issues that impact diverse populations. The program will engage students in an experiential-based learning environment where they collaborate with academic and professional public health partners throughout the Pacific Northwest.
This MPH program at Puget Sound (1) aligns with our institutional mission and philosophies, including fostering critical thinking, apt expression, social justice and community engagement, (2) builds on our expertise in providing excellence in health professions education and, (3) reflects our deep commitment to being community- and service-centered, and (4) will prepare professionals to provide our region with high quality public health care.
## What You'll Learn
The MPH program at Puget Sound emphasizes the following key learning competencies:
* Evidence-based Approaches to Public Health
* Public Health and Health Care Systems
* Planning and Management to Promote Health
* Policy in Public Health
* Leadership
* Communication
* Interprofessional Practice
* Systems Thinking
In addition to the key areas of learning expected of graduates of MPH programs, the MPH program at Puget Sound develops competencies in general public health and health equity consistent with the mission of the program. University of Puget Sound MPH program competencies:
* Evaluate the pathways from environmental influences to health inequities in population health through the lens of social determinants of health.
* Apply ethical principles to decisions in public health practice.
* Effectively communicate complex public health information through data visualization techniques to lay-audiences.
* Synthesize evidence to identify health disparities and their root causes in populations.
* Consider historical, socioeconomic and cultural contexts to design effective and culturally responsive global health interventions.
Sample Courses
PH 623
Global Health
The course provides an overview to issues surrounding global health. Students explore multiple mechanisms that lead to health inequities around the world. Students examine policies and interventions that aim to address issues of morbidity and mortality at national or global scale. Topics covered may include: impacts of globalization on population health, socioeconomic contexts of disease, infectious disease, nutrition, relationships between culture and health, ethical and human rights concerns, and the role of nongovernmental organizations in global health.
PH 606
Fundamentals of Epidemiology
This course introduces epidemiological principles and methods to study, quantify, and assess the distribution and determinants of disease among populations. Students examine the influence of biological and social factors on population health. Students evaluate epidemiologic study designs and apply measures of association as methods for determining relationships.
PH 620
Environmental Health
This course introduces students to the interrelationship between human health and the natural and built environments. Students examine current environmental issues and the human activity that affects public and global health, such as climate change, disease transmission, urbanization, pollution, as well as the impact of these changes over time. Students also study the implications of environmental strategies related to community design, occupational health, and policy influencing health.
PH 604
Health Disparities and Marginalized Populations
This course introduces students to disparities in health care and public health in the United States and around the world that occur as a result of demographic and socioeconomic factors. Students will explore the existence and impact of these disparities on individual and population health. Students will integrate knowledge to develop culturally appropriate strategies to improve health and minimize population health disparities.
PH 605
Qualitative Research Methods
The course covers qualitative research skills to discern how and why humans behave relative to their health, and emphasizes planning, design, and evaluation. Students gain an understanding of qualitative research techniques by articulating a phenomenon of interest, identifying a target population, employing proper data collection strategies, and selecting proper techniques for results verification.
Meet the Faculty
Professor and Chair, Sociology and Anthropology, and Director, Public Health
Prof. Lewin specializes in medical sociology, which has led him to research focusing on pharmaceutical advertising and home-visit programs for elderly people. His classes include introductory and specialized courses.
Sara Fischer
Assistant Professor, Public Health
sefischer@pugetsound.edu
Prof. Fischer is a scholar and teacher of global health policy and systems, with a regional focus on sub-Saharan Africa.
Alexandria Drake
adrake@pugetsound.edu
Prof. Drake studies how structural and cultural factors prohibit and promote access to healthcare and health decision-making practices.
Katie Judson
Adjunct Faculty, Public Health
kjudson@pugetsound.edu
Prof. Judson is an adjunct faculty member in the school of Public Health. She began working in public health in 2009 as a Peace Corps health volunteer.
Kevin Lee
kclee@pugetsound.edu
Prof. Lee teaches courses focusing on research design and data analyses. His research interests focus primarily on social relationships among chimpanzees in western Uganda.
Beyond the classroom
During your second year as an MPH student, you will participate in a variety of experiences that will build off of the foundational classroom knowledge that you gained during your first year. All students complete a minimum of 150 hours of Applied Practice Experience. Previous placements include, but are not limited to, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, Public Health - Seattle & King County, MultiCare Health System, and Fund for Global Health. After completing the Applied Practice Experience, students integrate curricular content with their applied learning experience in an Integrative Learning Experience, which culminates in a project that is tailored to the students' educational and professional goals.
After Puget Sound
Public health offers a wide variety of career opportunities in fields such as epidemiology, health education, program evaluation, biostatistics, emergency preparedness, and public policy. Potential employers range in size, scope, and structure. Graduates may choose to work for government agencies, nonprofits, hospitals/medical centers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), universities, and more. This can include large employers such as the World Health Organization or small local grassroots organizations. Recent graduates from our program have found employment at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Benton-Franklin Health District, and BME Strategies, among other organizations across the country.
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