Graduate Catalog 2024-2025

Department of Public Health

Dr. William Mkanta, Department Chair

Academic Complex, Office 133
Phone: (270) 745-4797, Fax: (270) 745-4437
Email: public.health@wku.edu
Website: http://www.wku.edu/publichealth

The Department of Public Health offers graduate programs which prepare students for careers as healthcare administration, environmental health and safety, public health, and occupational safety and health professionals.  Graduate certificate programs offered include epidemiology, health education, global health administration, occupational safety and health, and worksite health promotion. An important responsibility of the faculty is to carry out applied research and other scholarly activities which provide opportunities for graduate student engagement, provide for the professional advancement of faculty, expand knowledge and practice in public health fields, advance the training of students, and improve health in the communities we serve. The department faculty, staff, and students conduct service with multiple agencies, institutions, and organizations in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and across the nation. Faculty in the department are leaders in teaching, research, and service, and provide leadership to various committees, centers, and organizations.  Department faculty also serve in various leadership roles for the College of Health and Human Services.

Graduate students are expected to work closely with their academic advisors in planning their program of study. Students will have opportunities for advanced training through research, practical experiences, and internships. More information about the department is available at: https://www.wku.edu/publichealth.

Faculty

Professor

Grace K. Lartey PhD (Health Education), University of Toledo, 2006

Gretchen M. Macy EdD (Kinesiology and Health Promotion), University of Kentucky, 2012

William N. Mkanta PhD (Health Services Research), University of Florida, 2005

Ritchie D. Taylor PhD (Environmental Science), University of North Texas, 2002

Associate Professor

Xiuhua Ding PhD (Epidemiology and Biostatistics), University of Kentucky, 2016

Gregory E. Ellis-Griffith PhD (Administration/Health Services), University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2010

Michelle C. Reece PhD (Public Health), East Tennessee State University, 2014

Edrisa Sanyang PhD (Occupational & Environmental Health (Industrial Hygiene)), University of Iowa, 2016

Instructor I

Jacqueline R. Basham MPH (Public Health, Environmental Health), Western Kentucky University, 2015

Melanie D. Eaton MBA, Western Kentucky University, 2003

Angel N. Shoemake MPH (Public Health), Western Kentucky University, 2020

Environmental and Occupational  Health Science Courses

EOHS 502    Health Promotion in the Workplace    3 Hours

Provides specific skills and concepts for worksite health promotion as it pertains to designing, implementing, and evaluating multifaceted health promotion programs in the workplace. Additional skills acquired in this course include financial and marketing strategies, policy development, and effective communication between employer and employee.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

EOHS 503    Health Assessment in Workplace    3 Hours

This course presents concepts and teaches skills needed to assess health status at the individual, organizational, and community levels in a workplace wellness environment. Emphasis is placed on, but not limited to, physical and psychological components of health.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024

EOHS 504    Principles of Total Worker Health and Worker Well Being    3 Hours

Advance understanding of both organizational and individual factors that influence total worker health. Introduce theoretical frameworks, strategies, and principles to promote worker well-being.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

EOHS 510    Watershed Management and Science    3 Hours

Watershed management and science including water resources protection, watershed health development and assessment, and environmental and water ethics.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023

EOHS 546    Environmental & Occupational Health Science Internship    3,6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Supervised experience in an organization, facility, industry or business with Environmental, Occupational Health & Safety or Workplace Health Promotion responsibilities (or a combination of those). Assignments individually arranged. Note: Off-campus travel required. Permission of EOHS internship coordinator required.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; summer 2024; fall 2024

EOHS 550    Principles of Occupational Safety and Health    3 Hours

Examines the principles of occupational safety and health in the workplace for controlling hazards, preventing occupational exposures, and improving worker health. Concepts surveyed will include hazards in the workplace, hazard and safety analysis, hierarchy of controls, injury prevention, industrial hygiene, workplace health promotion, and occupational safety and health management.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

EOHS 560    Environmental Management and Risk Assessment    3 Hours

Application of environmental management systems, methods, and tools to mitigate threats to environmental and human health. Guide students to understand their role as an environmental health professional working with the public and private sectors in controlling adverse environmental conditions through the competencies of assessment, management, and communication. Application of risk assessment as it relates to human and environmental health.

Prerequisite(s): PH 584 or permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

EOHS 570    Industrial Hygiene    3 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Presents contemporary occupational exposure and hazard issues in the workplace. Issues of industrial hygiene and general methods of control are addressed. Note: Field trips required; students responsible for own transportation.

Prerequisite(s): EOHS 577 and PH 520

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

EOHS 571    Air Quality Management    3 Hours

Examines the origins, dispersion, control and effects of air pollution; indoor air pollution; and the history of air quality control management. Provides a balanced account of air quality control regulations including the provisions and implications of the Federal Air Quality regulations, standards, setting, policy implementation and technical and management aspects of air quality control.

Prerequisite(s): PH 584 or permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2023; fall 2024

EOHS 572    Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology    3 Hours

The course will introduce student to the research approaches for the epidemiologic study of the environmental and workplace hazards. This course involves the study and reasoning of environmental and occupational epidemiologic study designs, basic and novel methods of characterizing exposures, and techniques for designing epidemiologic studies, and implementing methods to improve the evaluation of research in these fields.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2024

EOHS 577    Environmental Toxicology    3 Hours

Toxicological principles and environmental risk assessment with emphasis on routes of exposure, biokinetics, and response to chemical stressors.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024

EOHS 580    Solid and Hazardous Wastes    3 Hours

Management of solid and hazardous wastes in the environment. Emphasis on regulatory compliance, control and remediation technologies, and environmental pathways.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2023; spring 2024

EOHS 595    Public Health Management of Disasters    3 Hours

Examines the background and history of natural and technological disasters, their characteristics, human health and environmental impacts, and the management activities needed to control them. Provides an overview of federal programs to enhance state and local prevention, preparedness, and public health response to disasters.

Prerequisite(s): PH 584 or permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

EOHS 598    Capstone in Environmental and Occupational Health    3 Hours

Examine, refine, and demonstrate environmental health and/or occupational health and safety competencies. Students gain knowledge and skills in environmental and occupational health practice by working with an interdisciplinary team to solve a real-world environmental and occupational health and safety issue. Each student has the opportunity to apply classroom and practical experience received throughout their MS-EOHS coursework into an integrative experience. Students particularly will gain skills in exposure science, data analytics, advocacy, communication with diverse workforce audiences on contemporary EOHS issue, and improves the articulation of theory to practice through development, composition, and presentation of a research or analytic project on a relevant EOHS topic.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Restriction(s): Enrollment limited to students with a semester level of Masters Degree.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2024

Health Care Administration Courses

HCA 401G    Fundamentals of Health Care Financial Management    3 Hours

Basic principles of financial management for health care organizations. Financial ratios applicable to health providers and insurance companies; issues in the healthcare revenue cycle and value chain; recognizing sources of risk in reimbursement; and addressing risk in financial plans.

Recent Term(s) Offered: summer 2023

HCA 520    Statistical Application in Health Care    1 Hour (repeatable max of 3 hrs)

This course covers basic statistical applications in SPSS and MS Excel. Familiarity with personal computers is assumed.

Corequisite(s): PH 520

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 530    Independent Investigation in Health Care Administration    1-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Research problems or projects in the area of health care administration.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 540    Health Care Organization and Management    3 Hours

Organization and management principles, theories and practices in the health care environment. The U.S. health care system, the role of the administrator, facilities operations and evaluation, and health administration research.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

HCA 541    Strategic Management & Marketing of Health Services    3 Hours

Marketing principles, theories, and practices in the health care environment. Structured opportunities to study health care marketing literature and to develop skills in marketing plan development.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

HCA 542    Health Care Human Resources Administration    3 Hours

Principles and practices of human resources administration in the health care field. The unique characteristics of professional, technical, skilled and unskilled health care workers explored and emphasized.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024

HCA 543    Health Care Quality and Accountability    3 Hours

Critical knowledge of health care quality and required accountability within the health care industry. The major topics of quality assurance, risk management, utilization management, JCAHO and NCQA standards, Six Sigma, and continuous quality improvement will be discussed.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

HCA 544    Healthcare Systems Design and Behavior    3 Hours

Systems approach to effective and efficient management of health services delivery. Application, analysis and evaluation of organizational design and behavior principles to the health care delivery components. Factors such as structure, work design, operations, and performance that affect decision-making are explored.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 545    Managerial Finance for Health Services    3 Hours

Methods of financing the delivery of health services in the U.S. Includes budgetary mechanisms and managerial finance techniques for measuring, monitoring, analyzing, and controlling costs for both the providers and consumers of healthcare services.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540 and BA 505

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024

HCA 546    Graduate Internship    1-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Supervised, full-time experience in a facility or in an agency approved by the Department of Public Health.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; summer 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; summer 2024; fall 2024

HCA 547    Global and Comparative Health Systems    3 Hours

A review of global health issues including how systems, policies, and program management influence availability and delivery of health services. Students will learn about the development of health systems and make comparisons of different types of health systems based on different aspects of health and health care such as resources availability, access to care, quality of care and models of care delivery. Issues of global health management and health disparities will be investigated in depth at the local, regional and global levels.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2023

HCA 551    Health Care Jurisprudence    3 Hours

Provides an overview of the American legal system as it relates to the health care industry. Topics include duty owed (patients and organizations), ethics, malpractice, risk management, quality, accountability, rights without obligations (of patients, practitioners, and management), and current trends in health care law.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

HCA 555    Healthcare Preparedness and Leadership    3 Hours

Disaster planning, Bioterrorism, other weapons of mass destruction, events, emergency response systems management, federal, state, and local coordinating activities, leadership principles, leadership complexities regarding healthcare professionals, and ethical dilemmas in critical leadership scenarios will be discussed.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 556    Ambulatory Care/Rural Health    3 Hours

Explores operational management techniques related to ambulatory care settings identifying dynamics unique to outpatient settings. Special focus is on rural areas and their diverse management challenges.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 559    Global Health Service-Learning Practicum    3-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Designed to provide students in health professions with a global service-learning experience. Integrates student knowledge and skills with practical applications in a global health context, based on the student career objectives and the health needs of the served communities.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 564    Health Systems Informatics    3 Hours

A survey of information use and management in a health care context. Course content includes health information systems, informatics, database design, e-health, and patient privacy.

Corequisite(s): HCA 565

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 565    Information Systems Laboratory    1 Hour (repeatable max of 3 hrs)

Management of health care data using MS Excel and MS Access. Basic familiarity with personal computers is assumed.

Corequisite(s): HCA 564

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 571    Managed Care    3 Hours

Overview of managed care and organized delivery systems, including history, organizational structures, financing, cost containment strategies, and policy issues.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

HCA 572    Special Topics in Health Services    3 Hours

Survey of current topics within the field of health care administration. This course varies in content from term to term and may require field trips to area organizations.

Recent Term(s) Offered: winter 2023; winter 2024

HCA 574    Decision Making in Health Care    3 Hours

Basic decision models and decision making tools useful for managing uncertainty and solving health care management problems. The course is concerned with a wide variety of applied and theoretical archetypes, as well as modeling and quantitative techniques currently used in health care management.

Prerequisite(s): HCA 540

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024

HCA 586    Health Economics & Policy    3 Hours

Economic principles applied to the study of health care facilities, health services and manpower. These 400-level courses may be taken for graduate credit. Students receiving graduate credit in 400G courses will be required to do additional research, readings, or other appropriate assignments.

Recent Term(s) Offered: summer 2022; summer 2023; summer 2024

Public Health Courses

PH 443G    Health Problems of the Aged    3 Hours

Covers ecological factors affecting human health and longevity, current health problems, and research on health and disease as they relate to the aged.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 444G    Death Education    3 Hours

Man's relationship to death and dying, coming to terms with eventual death, coping with death of loved ones and with fear of death. Includes suicide prevention. Note: Field trips are required. Three hours of social or behavioral science required.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 447G    Human Values/Health Sciences    3 Hours

Analysis of the difficult ethical, legal, and social dilemmas confronting the health care delivery system, patients, medical practitioners, and other health care professionals in contemporary American society. Note: Appropriate background in the social, behavioral, biological, or allied health sciences required.

Prerequisite(s): PH 261 and PH 381

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 450G    Rural Health and Safety    3 Hours

Students will explore a variety of health and safety issues unique to rural populations. The interdisciplinary team concept will be used throughout the course to foster collaboration that facilitates sharing of the expertise of the students and faculty. One Saturday meeting will be required for a team building activity.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 461G    Comprehensive School Health Program    3 Hours

Examination and application of the components of the comprehensive school health program. Discussion of the role of administrators, teachers, counselors and health service personnel in conducting, coordinating and evaluating the comprehensive school health program. Includes visitation in public schools.

Prerequisite(s): PH 381

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 465G    Health/Safety/Elementary School    3 Hours

Nature and purpose of school health and safety in the elementary school, including curriculum development, instructional content areas, appraising students' health, and evaluation.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 467G    Drug Abuse Education    3 Hours

A drug abuse education and prevention course designed to provide current and documented information about abused substances. Includes study of the development, implementation and evaluation of drug prevention programs in the home, school, community and workplace.

Prerequisite(s): PH 100 or equivalent

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 468G    Sexuality Education    3 Hours

Emphasis in this course is on planning, implementation and evaluation of school and community sexuality education programs. Health and policy issues which affect sexuality and sexual behavior are addressed along with analysis of contemporary health issues with sexual dimensions.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022

PH 501    Research Methods    3 Hours

Methods, materials, techniques, and planning of research studies used and conducted by the profession.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 520    Biostatistics for Public Health    3 Hours

Application of statistical theory and principles in public health and related disciplines. Emphasis is placed on developing and testing hypotheses, utilizing appropriate statistical methodology, and the use of appropriate technology.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; summer 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; summer 2024; fall 2024

PH 530    Selected Topics/Independent Study    1-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

With faculty guidance, students select and explore a topic of interest in public health.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; winter 2023; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; winter 2024; spring 2024

PH 546    Graduate Internship    1-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Supervised,applied field experience with various agencies, organizations, facilities, industries, and businesses with health-related missions or programs. Placement must be approved prior to registering. Off campus travel required.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022

PH 548    Community Organizing in Public Health    3 Hours

Application of strategies and skills to address underlying social, political, and economic factors that affect public health, including policy-making, community organization and mobilization, leadership, advocacy, negotiation, and communication.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; summer 2024; fall 2024

PH 564    Public Health Issues in Women's Health    3 Hours

Examines social, economic, environmental, behavioral and political factors that influence women's health, as viewed from a public health perspective.

Recent Term(s) Offered: winter 2022; summer 2022; summer 2023; winter 2024

PH 567    Admn Compr School Health Program    3 Hours

Management and coordination of policies, procedures, activities and resources designed to promote and protect the health and well being of students and staff. Includes administration of family resource and youth service centers, and coordination of school health education, healthful environment, and health services.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 568    Public Health Approaches to STD/HIV Prevention    3 Hours

A study of the most common sexually transmitted infections, including infection with the human immunodeficiency virus, and their complications, with special emphasis on prevention and control. Topics include STI/HIV counseling and testing, partner notification, and the development of educational interventions for target populations.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 572    Practice of Drug Abuse Prevention    3 Hours

Examines the epidemiology of the use and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. In addition, there will be in-depth study of relevant prevention science as applied to school and community settings. The course will be a didactic presentation of material, with substantial engagement activities for students.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 575    Program Planning in Public Health Practice    3 Hours

Methods of assessing population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities' health and translating findings into designing a population-based program, project, or intervention.

Prerequisite(s): PH 587

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; summer 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

PH 576    Public Health Education and Communication Techniques    3 Hours

Provide concepts and skills in using education and communication techniques in public health promotion programs. Discuss policy advocacy and principles of effectively interacting with community constituents influential in health promotion programs.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 578    Health Inequities    3 Hours

Analysis of social, economic, and political structures that create health inequities in marginalized and minority populations. Application to program planning and policy analysis.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

PH 580    Public Health Foundations and Practice    3 Hours

Comprehensive examination of public health foundations, including philosophy, purpose, history, organization, and functions and activities of public health at the global, national, state and community levels. Application of systems thinking to public health practice.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

PH 581    Applied Methods in Public Health Practice/Field Epidemiology    3 Hours

Application of methods, tools, and techniques utilized by public health practitioners and other related professionals to identify, develop, and assess population-based interventions and outbreak investigations.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; fall 2023; fall 2024

PH 582    Epidemiology    3 Hours

Apply epidemiological methods to settings and situations in public health practice. Emphasizes problem solving and interpretation.

Recent Term(s) Offered: winter 2022; spring 2022; summer 2022; fall 2022; winter 2023; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; summer 2024; fall 2024

PH 583    Public Health Administration    3 Hours

Advanced concepts of organization, administration and management of public health agencies and programs.

Recent Term(s) Offered: summer 2022; summer 2023; summer 2024

PH 584    Principles of Environmental Health    3 Hours

A study of the traditional, emerging and controversial issues associated with environmental health. Biological, chemical and physical threats to human health are included.

Recent Term(s) Offered: summer 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; summer 2024; fall 2024

PH 585    Global Health    3 Hours

Analysis of current issues in global health and strategies to address them.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2023

PH 586    Violence Prevention    3 Hours

An examination of the nature and extent of family, school and community violence, the psychosocial and biological roots, past efforts to prevent and control violence, and principals of violence prevention.

Recent Term(s) Offered: None

PH 587    Health Behavior Theory    3 Hours

Applications of concepts and theories used in social and behavioral sciences to identify and conceptualize interventions to public health problems.

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; summer 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; summer 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

PH 588    Public Health Capstone    3 Hours

Integrative learning experience that synthesizes core MPH courses into an applied practice experience, within the classroom, addressing a current issue in public health.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; summer 2022

PH 591    Health Program Evaluation    3 Hours

Application of methods and techniques to evaluate public health programs.

Prerequisite(s): PH 587 and (PH 520 or PH 620) or permission of instructor

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022; fall 2022; spring 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; fall 2024

PH 598    Applied Research in Public Health    1-3 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Synthesis and application of MPH competencies to investigate and address public health issue.

Prerequisite(s): permission of instructor

Restriction(s): Enrollment is limited to students in Public Health (152)

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2023; fall 2023; spring 2024; summer 2024; fall 2024

PH 599    Thesis Research/Writing    3-6 Hours (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Thesis research and writing directed by faculty committee.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2024

PH 600    Maintain Matriculation    1 Hour (repeatable max of 6 hrs)

Continued enrollment for program completion.

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022

PH 620    Advanced Biostatistics    3 Hours

Advanced techniques to analyze and interpret quantitative data and make inferences for public health practice.

Prerequisite(s): PH 520 or equivalent

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2022

PH 630    Advanced Epidemiology    3 Hours

Application of advanced epidemiologic principles for population-based decision-making.

Prerequisite(s): PH 582

Recent Term(s) Offered: fall 2022; fall 2023; fall 2024

PH 631    Contemporary Topics in Epidemiology    3 Hours (repeatable max of 9 hrs)

Examines and explores contemporary issues and methods in epidemiology.

Prerequisite(s): PH 582

Recent Term(s) Offered: spring 2023; spring 2024