Module 1: Determinants of Health

After completing this module, students will be able to:

1. Discuss how to assess the health status of populations using available data (e.g., public health surveillance data, vital statistics, registries, surveys, electronic health records and health plan claims data)
2. Describe the distribution of morbidity and mortality by age, gender, race, socioeconomic status, and geography in the United States
3. Discuss the role of socioeconomic, environmental, cultural, and other population-level determinants of health on the health status and health care of individuals and populations
4. Identify the leading causes of death, leading underlying causes of death, and health disparities in the United States
5. Apply the Healthy People 2020 Objectives both in assessment of health status and as a component of strategies to improve community health

Class Lecture Materials

Supplemental Materials

APTR members who are logged-in will be able to access the following information at the end of this page. 

Case Study

Community health assessment is key to understanding the health problems and priorities of a population. This case outlines a process by which the participants can complete a health assessment of a community using indicator-based methods. Students construct a set of health indicators from a variety of domains, evaluate problems and report on the health priorities for a community. The students relate identified health issues to underlying behavioral risk factors.

• Community Health Assessment Onondaga County, New York - Student Guide (PDF) 
• Community Health Assessment Onondaga County, New York - Preceptor Version (PDF) 

Resources

• Determinants of Health - Resources (PDF) 
• Determinants of Health - PowerPoint References (PDF)