Open University: Public Health and Vulnerable Groups, Spring 2025

This web course is designed to introduce the students to the causes and other underlying factors that contribute to the diminished capacities of a population subgroup, thus making it vulnerable. The course aims to illuminate the specific needs of these groups from health care and societal point of view. Specifically, students are expected to learn approaches and interventions that are relevant for public health.

General:

-Introduction to vulnerable groups: Based on cultural, political and social context of any given society, specifically vulnerable groups can include elderly, disabled, women, orphans, street children, refugees, religious minorities, HIV-infected, substance abusers, unemployed etc.

-Identifying the causes and risk factors: Physical vs. social vulnerability, socio-economic limitations, personal limitations, ethnicity, religion, gender, political situation etc.

-Dimensions of vulnerability: Social determinants of health, socially patterned disparities, social discrimination, social networks and social support, public health issues associated with vulnerability, temporary versus permanent vulnerabilities.

- Ethical issues: Basic human rights and social justice, access to health care, health equality, special consideration for specific needs in health care, priorities in policy making and research.

Community-based rehabilitation:

-General: Socioeconomic rehabilitation; health promotion and education, addressing long-term wellbeing, the role of local and international actors (organizations) involved.

- Public health for elderly: Subject-specific theoretical part, identifying specific causes for vulnerability, functionality, interventions and rehabilitation.

- Public health for disabled: Subject specific theoretical part, identifying the causes for vulnerability, understanding the mechanisms of interventions and rehabilitation process

Students should be able to:

- understand the principles of cultural and social segregation or discrimination that underline severe inequalities in contemporary societies

- study the factors that make certain groups more vulnerable to various hazards such as poor health, disabilities, risk of early death etc.

- evaluate the short term and long term needs of vulnerable populations

- learn strategies and best practices to get vulnerable groups empowered and thus alleviate disproportional risks

This course will be conducted completely online.

Implementation methods

- Web-based learning: the Moodle platform of the University of Eastern Finland will be used.

- Independent reading of relevant literature (textbook, articles and other online reading material)

- Central part of the web-based learning consists of in-depth discussions over the period of approximately 3 weeks.

- Successful completion of the course also requires independent studying and reading of various sources (papers, e-publications, reports etc.) that are relevant for the topic.

- Updated study material will be provided during the course.

Evaluation criteria: The final mark will consist of evaluation of activity and quality of discussions. Final grading: 0-5.