PUB HLTH 7028 - Infectious Disease Epidemiology

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2021

This course provides an introduction to core concepts and principles in infectious disease prevention and control. Students will gain skills in epidemiology, research methods and understand the burden of infectious disease. Students will be introduced to epidemiological methods to understand infectious disease surveillance data, disease transmission, and outbreak investigation, with a demonstrated understanding of the approaches for disease control of emerging infectious diseases such as COVID-19 pandemic. The framework underpinning this course is the understanding and application of the interactions within and between the agent, host and environment as well as utilising a One Health approach in disease control and prevention.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code PUB HLTH 7028
    Course Infectious Disease Epidemiology
    Coordinating Unit Public Health
    Term Semester 2
    Level Postgraduate Coursework
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to three hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange N
    Course Staff
    Course Coordinator: Dr Adriana Milazzo

    Phone: +61 8 8313 0199
    Email: adriana.milazzo@adelaide.edu.au
    Location: Level 9, AHMS Building
    Course Timetable

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

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    1. Analyse the public health impact of existing, emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases within Australia and globally;
    2. Demonstrate an understanding of the interaction between agent, host and environment and the factors impacting the ability to control infectious diseases;
    3. Demonstrate knowledge of methods and principles of infectious disease surveillance and capacity to evaluate surveillance
    systems;
    4. Apply epidemiological principles and methods to the investigation, management and control of infectious diseases;
    5. Interpret, analyse and synthesise infectious disease data using epidemiological methods.




    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)
    1-5
    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
    4-5
    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
    5
    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
    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
    N/A
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    On-line textbook: Sonja A. Rasmussen and Richard A. Goodman (Editors),The CDC Field Epidemiology Manual, 2018.
    Recommended Resources
    All resources, including links to journal articles and reading lists, will be disseminated via MyUni.
    Online Learning
    On-line learning

    Computers
    General information about University computer laboratories is available at http://www.adelaide.edu.au/technology/yourservices/learning-teaching/student-suites/

    MyUni
    As an enrolled student, you will have access to the University’s on-line teaching facilities. This is an implementation of the Blackboard system called MyUni. MyUni is accessible from the University of Adelaide’s home-page: www.adelaide.edu.au

    You will need your student login name and a password.

    If you do not have access, then either you are not enrolled or the administrators of MyUni do not know of your enrolment. Please call Ask Adelaide on 8313 5208 (University extension 35208) or the IT help desk on 8313 3000 (University extension 33000) for assistance with MyUni difficulties. 

    Course materials will be placed on MyUni. Note also that Announcements about a course are often made on the relevant page of the MyUni site for the course. For example, notifications of a change in lecture venue, updates on availability of course material etc. will be made on the MyUni site.

    Email
    We assume that students access  e-mail and that their address is the University of Adelaide student address that was assigned on  enrolment. This is of the form: firstname.lastname@student.adelaide.edu.au A notice to a student by e-mail is considered to have been received and read by the student unless there is a transmission error and the postmaster bounces the message back to us. As discussed above, the Announcements page of the MyUni site for this course will also display relevant notices from time to time, so it is essential that students check their student e-mail and to log on to MyUni
    regularly.

  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    This course is presented in DUAL mode.

    Lectures for both modes will be online via MyUni.

    For online students, most activities, worksheets, discussions etc will be available though MyUni however there will also be a number of zoom sessions throughout the course as well. MyUni is also the prime means of communication between students and lecturers.

    This course will introduce students to the concepts and principles of infectious diseases within a population health framework. Each week students will be expected to engage with recorded lectures &/or online material to introduce students to key topics, concepts and principles. The core material will be supplemented with a 2-hour weekly workshop aimed at collaborative and experiential learning in order to develop students’ capacity to synthesise relevant information and ideas. The workshops will include presentations from guest speakers.
    Workload

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

    As a general rule in any post-graduate university course, students need to allow a minimum of eight to 12 hours per week. This means that, for Infectious Disease Epidemiology, in addition to engaging with the lecture material, students will need to set aside at least a further eight hours per week for reading around topics, completing workshop and interactive learning session materials, participation in the online discussion board, and completion of assignments.

    You are urged to bear this in mind when planning your university timetable, particularly if you are also engaged in paid employment. In our experience, students may not be able to demonstrate their full capacity if they are working full-time and studying full-time. Students are expected to engage with all course materials as completion of readings alone will almost certainly not provide sufficient material to enable a pass.

    Learning Activities Summary
    Topics include:
    Infectious disease agents
    Epidemiological triad
    Emerging Infectious diseases
    One Health
    Notifiable diseases
    Surveillance
    Epidemiological methods
    Outbreak investigation
    Public health emergency preparedness
  • Assessment

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

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

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task Task Type Weighting Learning Outcome
    On-line quizzes Summative 15% 1-5
    Participation




    Summative 10% 1-5
    Evaluation of surveillance system Summative 20% 3-5
    Feedback from the course coordinator
    prior to receiving next clue to ensure groups are correctly following steps in
    the investigation


    Outbreak investigation – group assignment






    Summative





    20%

    1-5
    Report to WHO Summative 35% 1-5
    Assessment Detail
    On-line quizzes
    (Weighting 15%): Quizzes throughout the semester will aid students in monitoring their understanding of key concepts and principles for
    the topic areas.

    Participation
    (Weighting 10%): Participation with peers in workshops and on-line activities. Students will be given tasks to complete either beforecoming to the workshop (flipped learning) or in pairs/groups will complete worksheets/activities completed in class.

    Outbreak investigation group assignment
    (Weighting 20%): Students will participate in an infectious disease outbreak investigation and will contribute to a range of activities including hypothesis generating questions, and analysis of data. Students will be provided with important information and clues in order to solve the outbreak – students will receive real time feedback from the course coordinator prior to receiving next clue to ensure that they are correctly following the steps in the investigation – this is formative assessment.

    Evaluation of surveillance system
    (Weighting 20%): Evaluate the surveillance system of an existing notifiable disease (1,000 words).

    Report to WHO
    (Weighting 35%): Prepare a report for the World Health Organisation (WHO) – the task is to reconsider existing control measures or
    strategies for an emerging disease with pandemic proportions (1,800 -2,000 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 assessmentof 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 
    <https://www.adelaide.edu.au/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.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • 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
  • 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’s disciplinary procedures.

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