Academic Affairs

Programs

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Recruitment and Credentialing 

Master in Public Health(MPH)

• Description
• Program Goals
• Educational Objectives
• Admission Requirements
• Program and Graduation requirements
• Curriculum
• First Year
• Second Year
• Research Methodology

Description

The goal of this Program is to prepare well rounded professionals, capable of meeting the public health needs of the community, ready to face up to the challenges that the current health system presents, and who possess the necessary knowledge, skills and attitudes to succeed in their careers.  To accomplish this, the institution has developed a 55-credit curriculum that will expose students to the basic concepts in public health, research, and fieldwork experiences.

Program Goals

The Master in Public Health Program Goals are:

1. To offer a broad education to future health professionals, in which they can provide quality service and assume leadership roles in the education and practice of Public Health, both in the private and public sectors of the community.
2. To promote through research the determining factors that effect the health of the population, with the purpose of reducing the prevailing mortality rates.
3. To contribute to the improvement of the population’s health by providing high quality health care services, technical assistance and consulting services.
4. To provide academic activities in which the student will develop projects and programs geared at promotion health effectively and preventing disease in the community.
5. To prepare the Public Health professionals with the capacity to make fair decisions in different scenarios, taking into consideration the opinion of the community.

Educational Objectives

The graduate from the MPH Program should be able to:

1. Define, explain and evaluate general public health concepts such as health status of the population, determinants of health and illness, health promotion, disease prevention, and factors that have an effect in the use of health care services.
2. Apply the basic sciences of public health, including epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental health and the social-behavioral sciences to the prevention of health problems.

Analytical Skills

1. Define health problems in a population using available data.
2. Appropriately use available data and statistical methods to identify health problems and to plan, implement and evaluate interventions and programs.
3. Identify and define variables relevant to public health problems.
4. Evaluate the validity and comparability of data and identify flaws in sources of data.
5. Explain how available data may reflect ethical, political, social and economic variables that affect general public health.
6. Describe the basic study designs used in public health research.
7. Make logical inferences of available data.

Effective Communication

1. Communicate in an effective and clear manner, both orally and in writing.
2. Present demographic, statistical and scientific information with precision and efficacy to professional and lay audiences.
3. Efficiently obtain information from individuals and organizations.
4. Be an advocate for the development of public health resources and programs.
5. Participate as a leader in efforts directed toward the solution of health problems.
6. Effectively use the media to provide information about public health. 

Cultural Sensitivity

1. Appreciate how cultural diversity affects public health.
2. Behave with sensitivity and professionalism in the interaction with people of different social, cultural and educational backgrounds, including people from different age, sex and lifestyles.
3. Identify and value the role of cultural factors in the presence of illness and in the implementation of disease prevention, health promotion and health care services.
4. Identify the health needs of special populations.
5. Develop and implement solutions to health problems that take into consideration cultural differences within the population.

Diagnosis and Inquiry of Public Health Problems

1. Discuss basic concepts of environmental health and how environmental factors affect morbidity.
2. Use indicators of risk to identify environmental health problems.
3. Describe the design of scientific epidemiological studies, including the investigation of epidemics.
4. Describe interview and qualitative inquiry methods.
5. List and identify available sources of information available for technical consultation and assistance to collect and analyze public health data.
6. Identify and describe laws and regulations related to public health research.
7. Identify limitations of scientific evidence, including the validity of available literature and the effectiveness of interventions.
8. Collect and interpret data about vital statistics, surveys and other special reports.
9. Apply screening strategies to appropriate health problems.

Information, Education and Empowerment of the Community about Public Health

1. Discuss concepts related to psychosocial and behavioral theory.
2. Establish measurable public health goals and objectives for specific population.
3. Explain concepts related to risk assessment and effectively communicate information about these risks.
4. Use technological resources to analyze, communicate and follow-up on public health problems in the community.
5. Describe the function of private and public organizations and agencies that relate to public health.
6. Endeavor toward community involvement and promote the sharing of power in the process of decision-making and program-implementation in public health.

Development of Public Health Policies, Programs and Plans for Community Support

1. Obtain and summarize information relevant to a public health problem.
2. Establish different options and policies available to solve a particular health problem.
3. Apply strategies of health promotion, primary and secondary prevention.
4. Explain possible health, social, political, legal and economic consequences of adopting a particular health policy or program.
5. Formulate viability and expected results from adopting a particular health policy or program.
6. Integrate processes related to strategic planning, including evaluation methods, during the development of public health programs in the community.
7. Establish liaisons with organizations such as health insurance companies, health care providers, public agencies, hospitals, volunteer groups, religious groups and others that may have an impact on public health.

Health Surveillance, Evaluation of Programs and Services

1. Develop, administer and analyze results of evaluation instruments.
2. Evaluate and monitor the quality of health care services.
3. Design studies of cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit ratio.

Research

1. Discuss basic principles of scientific research applied to public health.
2. Prepare proposals for external funding of research projects.
3. Apply principles of research design to public health projects.
4. Make logical inferences from available data.
5. Identify specific research methods applicable to different aspects of public health and services.
6. Conduct research with interdisciplinary collaboration.
7. Identify resources that will support the development of innovative research strategies applicable to public health.
8. Identify ethical issues related with research in the field of public health and recognize the mechanisms and regulations available to address them

Program and Graduation Requirements

The Master of Public Health is an evening program that lasts two academic years of three trimesters per year and one summer trimester.

To receive the degree of Master of Public Health (MPH), every student must fulfill the following requirements:

1. Satisfactorily complete the assigned curriculum requirements for the degree, with a GPA of 3.00 on a four-point grading scale:

2. Demonstrate a behavior acceptable to academic faculty and supervisors.
3. Satisfactorily meet all financial and library obligations.
4. Attend in person the rehearsal and commencement program at which time the degree is awarded.

Curriculum

First Year

3 rd Trimester Courses

Second Year

1 st Trimester Courses