ASC5003 · Advanced policy, prevention and public health

Overview

This unit considers a population-based, public health approach to responding to addiction-related harms in the community. You will learn about the social and historical context of drug policy, review and compare local and international examples of public health and policy responses for legal and illegal substance use and other addictive behaviours (e.g., gambling and other process addictions). Drawing on contemporary literature, you will learn about the social and political history of drug policy and explore local and international examples of public health strategies. You will develop understanding of how epidemiology informs public health policy and evaluate how prevention measures have been applied in a range of settings to reduce addiction-related harm. The impact of individual, community, and institutional forces on policy processes will highlight the unique complexities related to alcohol and other drugs and addiction policy implementation. You will critique the evidence for different prevention and harm minimisation and analyse how research is translated into effective policy and practice. This unit will help to prepare you for further study, research, or employment related to addiction and substance use policy and public health practice in a range of health and community setting.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. Critically review the evidence for effective public health policies in reducing harms attributed to legal and illegal substance use and addictive behaviours (e.g., gambling and other process addictions).
2. Synthesise ideas to effectively communicate issues and concepts relating specifically to addiction epidemiology, public health, and policy.
3. Appraise local and international public health strategies, interventions, and policy and investigate how individual, community and institutional forces can influence policy.
4. Explain how epidemiological data, public health and prevention contributes to reducing addiction-related harms in the community.
5. Evaluate primary, secondary and tertiary prevention measures and other harm minimisation strategies aimed at improving public health outcomes for people who engage in substance use and other addictive behaviours.
6. Critically compare public health responses between different drugs and behaviours and evaluate their effectiveness.

Workload

This 6 credit point unit will be delivered online over 6 weeks (intensive mode). The weekly workload is 12 hours per week. This includes 6 hours of teacher-directed learning (e.g., assigned readings, pre-recorded lectures, and other interactive activities to support discovery, exploration, application and reflection on learning) with approximately 4 hours of teacher-engagement (e.g., facilitated tutorials, workshops, discussion forums, etc.). You are also expected to engage in self-directed study each week (e.g., further reading, reflection, skills development, and assessment tasks). There are no on-campus requirements for this unit.

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.