Module HEAS43830: Placement in Public Policy & Global Health

Department: Health [Queen's Campus, Stockton]

HEAS43830: Placement in Public Policy & Global Health

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• This module provides students with a workplace based learning opportunity to develop, extend and demonstrate the application of theory, practical skills and communication skills in an organisation operating in area relevant to public policy and the health of communities.

Content

• The precise content of the module will be placement-provider specific and will be agreed between the placement provider, the student and the School of Medicine, Pharmacy & Health.
• The agreed content will be structured to pursue the learning outcomes identified below which will extend and develop skills acquired within the core modules of the MSc. These outcomes included issues awareness, evidence synthesis, policy development, intercultural competency and/or awareness of differing perspectives and traditions.
• Depending on the specifics of the placement agreement, students will have the opportunity to develop key practical skills such as:
• Interacting with individuals, families, carers, groups, local communities and/or field practitioners;
• Preparing, producing, implementing, commenting upon or evaluating policies;
• Preparing and communicating the content of records and reports;
• Developing personal or organisational networks;
• Conducting processes to identify, manage and minimise risk;
• Advocacy;
• Decision making;
• Managing resources and services;
• Pursuing personal and professional development;
• Managing ethical dilemmas and conflicts;
• Personal and professional accountability;
• Managing personal workloads;
• Other skills of relevance to the placement as agreed between the above parties.

Learning Outcomes

• Depending on the placement specifics, students will have gained:
• Experiential awareness of the organisational dynamics of entities with remits which cover aspects of public policy and issues that affect the health of communities whether in specific localities or more globally;
• The stakeholders relevant to developing and operationalizing policies and/or programmes for the health of communities;
• The constraints within which organisations in the field of public policy, local health and/or global health operate.

• Depending on the placement specifics, students will have gained skills in:
• Working with individuals, families, carers, groups, communities and/or practitioners to assess circumstances and/or needs;
• Planning, carrying out, reviewing and/or evaluating policy and/or practice within a specific organisation and in relation to a specific initiative on a topic of relevance to health for communities within a specific locality;
• Representing fairly the needs, values, views and/or circumstances of a specific community/constituency of people to another constituency;
• Managing and/or mitigating risk to individuals, families, carers, groups, communities, self and colleagues;
• Managing and being accountable (with supervision and support) for their own work practice within their placement organisation;
• Professional and intercultural competencies in a work-place based learning environment.

• Work collaboratively with people with differing status, backgrounds, occupation and/or profession, cultures and/or traditions;
• Comprehend complex ideas, propositions and theories;
• Express ideas and values clearly and succinctly in writing;
• Defend their opinions by reasoned argument;
• Seek out and identify appropriate sources of evidence and information;
• Tackle problems in a clear-sighted and logical fashion.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Placement work provides the opportunity for students to contextualise theory learnt in taught modules, learn experientially from the application of knowledge and theory, and develop new skills and attributes.
• Mentoring by an on-site placement mentor allows students to develop specific organisational knowledge and other skills for the particularities of the placement.
• Reflection supplements mediated learning by helping the individual to make connections between the theory and constructs they have learnt formally and the real world of working in public health organisations. It also allows identification of personal strengths and weaknesses and consideration of any ethical questions that may arise.
• A learning log aids reflection by using a set of 'prompt' questions to help students to think regularly about their own progress and to identify any key areas for personal development and/or discussion in tutorials.
• Tutorials allow students to creatively to engage with the knowledge they have encountered, constructing and re-constructing their own understanding. In this module tutorial activities may be diverse but include group reflection and problem solving about the experimental learning process and on the application of theory and skills gained in taught modules to practice.
• Report writing is designed to develop skills in writing concisely to tight instructions. The report requires students to summarise the placement organisation's key rationale and goals', "locate" their placement provider within wider local and global health systems, and undertake an analysis of how one aspect of this organisation's policies and/or programme development and/or implementation might be made more effective. In doing so, students will be required to undertake a stakeholder analysis, demonstrate application of theoretical learning, consider the constraints within which this organisation operates, and make recommendations for how this organisation's contribution to public health might be improved given the decision making and/or policy environment within which it operates.
• The essay is designed to deepen students' insight into the importance of ongoing professional development and interpersonal awareness when working with others in pursuit of the improved health of communities by reflecting on the placement organisation's remit and the student's own learning log.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Discussions with academic and practice mentors informed by the learning log.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University