MPH5255 · Health and human rights

Overview

This unit examines the interrelationship between public health and human rights. It begins by providing an overview of the development, content and application of human rights. Human rights aspects of contemporary local and international health concerns are then considered.

Offerings

Assessment

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

Assessment in this unit includes hurdle assessment tasks. Failure of any hurdle assessment task may result in failure of the unit

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. Familiarity with the theoretical foundations of human rights.
2. Discuss the development international human rights instruments, their status, mechanisms for their enforcement and their corresponding practical limitations.
3. Explain the interrelationship between human rights and health through exploration of current human rights dilemmas.
4. Investigate the different mechanisms by which human rights can shape public health programming and practice generally and their respective limitations.
5. Identify the human rights issues of particular situations including complex humanitarian emergencies, armed conflict and particular group issues.
6. Critically apply different human rights approaches to health and understand their strengths and weaknesses.
7. Apply human rights knowledge to a diversity of public health issues including family violence, asylum seekers and indigenous health.

Workload

6 hours of teacher-directed readings per week, and 6 hours of self-directed study per week. 4 on-campus Block Days.

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