Interdisciplinary Courses

Interdisciplinary Course Offerings in 2007-2008

Interdisciplinary Course Offerings in 2006-2007

Course Descriptions

PSY 260 - Topic: Introduction to Neuroscience (same as BIO 3-282)
This course examines the dynamic interplay between behavior and the brain. The foundation for this exploration will be built on the structural components of the brain and cells as well as the neurochemical communicative processes within and between nerve cells. This groundwork will provide the basis for our investigation of the reciprocal relationship between the brain and the natural and social environments that surround it. Topics may include: vision, perception, learning, memory, cognition, aggression, language, stress, and mental disorders. Prerequisite: PSY 161. (Laboratory Science) CHRISTIE-POPE/DRAGON

WST 259 - Women's Health Across the Lifestyle
Readings, lectures, and class discussion will consider women's health across the lifestyle to include childhood and adolescent development, sexuality and childbearing, menopause, aging, and mental health. US and international examples will be used to explore definitions of sex and gender and how they are used in health research and communications, the female body as a cultural symbol, and pertinent public health challenges such as infant and maternal mortality, HIV/AIDS, contraception and abortion, access to prenatal care, sexuality, child abuse and neglect, and body image.
Instructor: Anne Baber Wallis

POL 357 - Seminar: U.S. Health Policy
Review of the historic development of health policy in the United States and factors that affect future health policy initiatives. The basic elements underlying financing, organization, and delivery of healthcare services including Medicare, Medicaid, access to healthcare, and the relationship between the public and private sectors on health policy. Examination of how policy affects the development of health care legislation, and the process of political compromise and real world limitations upon the implementation of legislation. Prerequisite: POL 262 or 282. (Social Science) Instructor: Bobbi Buckner Bentz

ENG 274 - Advanced Writing in the Natural and Social Sciences
This course applies to junior and senior science majors, to allow the students to conduct further research and revise a substantial paper they have written for another course. The course will require students to further develop information literacy skills by learning appropriate citation style and showing sensitivity to copyright and intellectual property issues. Students will also read a variety of scientific articles and analyze effective scientific writing. In addition, the class will emphasize communication skills through writing by having students reconceive their papers for different audiences. The students will analyze and imitate effective writing in the sciences and develop their own effective writing style. Instructor(s): Shannon Reed and Barbara Christie-Pope


EDU 240 - Human Relations
The existing course in Human Relations has been revised to have greater relevancy to health science students. The course strives to promote feelings of unity and tolerance among diverse groups in a given society, along with the realization that difference is often the cause for misunderstanding, mistrust, and conflict in society. Course reading materials and assignments have been revised to reflect issues related to healthcare settings. Additionally, health science students will have the option of conducting the required observation time in healthcare settings.
Instructor: Jill Heinrich

ART 220 - Drawing: Anatomy and The Body
Through both lecture and a studio component, the class will explore the many ways in which modern and contemporary artists represent the body, from scientific documentation to metaphor for the human condition. Students will in turn draw from the live figure, skeletal structures, microscopic specimens, individual organs (heart, brain, etc), and optional drawing of the cadaver both wrapped and exposed; those electing not to draw from the cadaver must attend ongoing evening figure drawing sessions.
Instructor(s): Janet Lauroesch and Barbara Christie-Pope

PSY 256 - Seminar in Public Health
The course will broaden the students' knowledge and understanding of a variety of public health topics including the determinants of heath, various public health disciplines, unique issues facing public health, and the healthcare workforce. Students will gain an understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of public health and the overall effects on population health in the US and abroad.
Instructor: Bobbi Buckner Bentz

EDU 215 - Educational Psychology
The course examines the factors that influence the nature and quality of growth, development, and learning during the educational process. The current course has been modified to provide additional readings and observation experiences for students interested in the health sciences. Students will read articles about self-efficacy, social cognitive theory, and behavioral theory related to the communication process with patients.
Instructor: Kerry Bostwick


POL 337 - Comparative Healthcare Systems
The course will examine a number of healthcare policy issues facing the United States such as rising healthcare costs, quality of healthcare services, financing of the healthcare system, adoption of new technologies, and the role of the public and private sectors in providing healthcare. The course will also introduce students to the healthcare systme os some of the advanced industrialized countries such as Britain, Germany, Canada, and Japan.
Instructor: Aparna Thomas

ANT 356 - Medical Anthropology
The course will examine the etiology and treatment of illness from a cross-cultural perspective. The course will discuss prevalent theories of medical anthropology and focus on specific topics, such as cultural definitions of wellness. Additional topics may include ethnomedicine, culture and nutrition, the cultural context of diseases such as AIDS, ethnobotany, and the comparison of health-related practices in traditional and industrial societies.
Instructor(s): Alfrieta Monagan