Health Studies
Director: Jerusha Detweiler-Bedell
Administrative Coordinator: Alexis Rehrmann
Drawing upon Lewis & Clark’s strong culture of interdisciplinary learning, the health studies minor recognizes the growing interest students have in public health and the value of a liberal-arts approach to solving the world’s current and future public health challenges. The minor is multidisciplinary, bringing together coursework, internship experiences, and scholarly activity across the sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The minor provides the statistical and scientific foundation necessary for students interested in fields such as public health, health care administration, and health care policy alongside the narrative, psychological, and cultural contexts that supplement the coursework of those interested in medicine, physical therapy, and other clinical careers. Leveraging our renowned overseas and off-campus programs, students may apply up to 12 credits toward the minor from an approved overseas study program focused on public health. All students will have a health-related internship in Portland or overseas as part of their capstone experience.
Minor Requirements
A minimum of 24 semester credits distributed as follows:
Core Courses (12 credits)
- 4 credits from each of the Core categories below:
Electives (12 credits)
- 4 credits from each of the Electives categories below; at least one elective must be at the 300 or 400 level.
Students may apply up to 12 credits from an approved Lewis & Clark College overseas program focused on public health.
A minimum of 12 semester credits must be exclusive to the minor.
Core Categories
Statistics (4 credits)
| Statistics | ||
| Biostatistics in Public Health | ||
| Calculus & Statistics for Modeling the Life Sciences | ||
| Statistical Concepts and Methods | ||
| Research Methods in Political Science | ||
| Statistics I |
Foundational Approaches to Health Studies (4 credits)
| Public Health | ||
| Health Psychology |
Internship Capstone (4 credits)
| Health Studies Internship | ||
| Health Studies Practicum: Special Topic (minimum of 4 credits) | ||
| Overseas Internship (with prior approval; in a health-related setting) | ||
| Psychology Internship (with prior approval; in a health-related setting) |
Elective Categories
Mechanisms of Wellness/Disease (4 credits)
| Introduction to Neuroscience | ||
| Disease Ecology | ||
| Physiology | ||
| Perspectives in Environmental Chemistry | ||
| Perspectives in Nutrition | ||
| General Chemistry I | ||
| Aquatic Chemistry | ||
| Medicinal Organic Chemistry | ||
| Epidemiology | ||
| Abnormal Psychology | ||
| Introduction to Neuroscience | ||
| Brain and Behavior | ||
| Drugs and Behavior |
Psychological/Narrative Representations of Wellness/Disease (4 credits)
| Introductory Topics in Literature (when health-focused) | ||
| Writing and Illness | ||
| Renaissance Medicine in Literature | ||
| Ethics in Public Health | ||
| Systems & Stories: Health Care and the People Inside | ||
| Clinical Psychology | ||
| Health Psychology | ||
| Contemporary Issues in Psychiatric Health: The Complex Patient in a Complex System | ||
| Children's Mental Health | ||
| Social Construction of Madness | ||
| Health Narratives |
Global/Cultural Approaches to Wellness/Disease (4 credits)
| Health and Healing in the Ancient World | ||
| Global Health Economics | ||
| Global Health | ||
| The Irish Welfare System | ||
| Religion, Spirituality, and Medicine | ||
| Reproductive Justice: Bodies, Health, and Society | ||
| Medicine, Healing, and Culture | ||
| Altered States: Social and Cultural Dilemmas | ||
| Anthropology of Suffering | ||
| Topics in Medical Anthropology | ||
| Anthropology of the Body |
At least 12 semester credits must be exclusive to the minor (may not be used in any other set of major or minor requirements).
Faculty
Sepideh Azarshahri Bajracharya. Assistant professor with term of anthropology. Political culture of violence, communal politics, memory, narrative, urban ethnography, anthropology of space, South Asia. PhD 2008 Harvard University. BA 1999 Wesleyan University.
Barbara A. Balko. Associate professor of chemistry. Physical Chemistry. PhD 1991 University of California at Berkeley. AB 1984 Bryn Mawr College.
Yung-Pin Chen. Professor of statistics. Statistics, Sequential Designs. Probability, Stochastic Processes. PhD 1994 Purdue University. BS 1984 National Chengchi University, Taiwan.
Julio C. de Paula. Professor of chemistry. Physical Chemistry, Biophysical Chemistry, Nanotechnology. PhD 1987 Yale University. BA 1982 Rutgers University.
Jerusha Detweiler-Bedell. Professor of psychology, director of the health studies program. Clinical and community psychology, health psychology, psychology of gender, internships. PhD 2001, MPhil 1998, MS 1997 Yale University. MA 1995, BA 1995 Stanford University.
Daena J. Goldsmith. Associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, professor of rhetoric and media studies. Social media, health communication, gender. PhD 1990, MA 1988 University of Washington. BS 1986 Lewis & Clark College.
Robert A. Kugler. Paul S. Wright Professor of Christian Studies. Judeo-Christian Origins, Dead Sea Scrolls, Early Jewish Literature. PhD 1994 University of Notre Dame. MDiv 1984 Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary. BA 1979 Lewis & Clark College.
Aine Seitz McCarthy. Associate professor of economics. Applied microeconomics, development economics, labor and demography, economics of education. PhD 2016 University of Minnesota. BA 2006 Colby College.
Margaret Rowan Metz. Associate professor of biology. Plant Community Ecology, Tropical Ecology, Disease Ecology. PhD 2007 University of California at Davis. AB 1998 Princeton University.
Thomas J. Schoeneman. Professor of psychology. Personality, abnormal psychology, internships. PhD 1979, MS 1974, BA 1973 State University of New York at Buffalo.
Jessica D. Starling. Associate professor of religious studies and department chair. East Asian Religions, Buddhism. PhD 2012, MA 2006 University of Virginia. BA 2000 Guilford College.
Todd Watson. Associate professor of psychology, co-director of the neuroscience program. Cognitive neuroscience, brain and behavior, statistics. PhD 2005 State University of New York at Stony Brook. MA 2000 Radford University. BS 1997 Pennsylvania State University.
Rishona Zimring. Professor of English, director of the gender studies program. Modern British Literature, Postcolonial Literature. PhD 1993, BA 1985 Yale University.
Carolyn Zook. Associate Director for the Center for Community and Global Health. PhD University of Pittsburgh. MS Portland State University. BA Lake Forest College.
Courses
HEAL 200 Biostatistics in Public Health
Content: Analysis, interpretation, visualization, and presentation of public health data. Overview of measurement methods, descriptive statistics, confidence intervals, and bivariate hypothesis testing using t-tests, chi-square test analysis of variance and multiple comparisons, correlation and their non-parametric test equivalents, and power and sample size determinations.
Prerequisites: None.
Usually offered: Annually, spring semester.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 210 Public Health
Content: Basic overview of current local, national, and global trends in both communicable and noncommunicable disease; the behavioral, social, and environmental determinants of population health, with a focus on causes of disparities in population health status; the organization of public health activities and their relation to other health-related activities (e.g., clinical care, emergency preparedness); analytical methods and the science of public health; the ethical challenges facing public health action; and emerging challenges for the field of public health. Mix of didactic material, case studies, and assignments to help students understand the role of public health, its relation to human-science fields, and the wide array of public-health career opportunities.
Prerequisites: ECON 103, MATH 105, MATH 123, MATH 255, or PSY 200.
Usually offered: Annually, fall, spring, and summer.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 260 Global Health
Content: Introduction to essential concepts from public health disciplines that are the foundations of global health practice; designed to prepare students to critically examine public health issues from a global perspective. Students will apply concepts through class exercises and discussions on current global health challenges. Global health experts will share their experiences and lessons learned from implementing global health research and programs. Students will gain experience in applying frameworks in addressing diverse global health needs and examine the human rights and ethical dimensions of global public health, including conflicts among individuals, communities, and nations.
Prerequisites: None.
Usually offered: Annually.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 299 Health Studies Independent Study
Content: Independent or directed study of topics not covered in depth in other courses, and/or faculty-supervised research projects. Details determined by the student in conference with the supervising faculty member.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required.
Usually offered: Annually, fall and spring semester.
Semester credits: 1-4.
HEAL 300 Health Studies Internship
Content: Applied field learning experience and exposure to health-oriented occupations and/or research settings. Becoming acquainted with important health-related institutions and their social impact. Theoretical, research-based, and practical frameworks for intervention.
Prerequisites: HEAL 210 or PSY 375. ECON 103, MATH 105, MATH 123, MATH 255, or PSY 200.
Usually offered: Annually, fall and spring semester.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 315 Ethics in Public Health
Content: Addresses ethical issues related to public health practice. Guidelines for ethical conduct of public health research and practice; issues related to autonomy, individual rights, power, coercion, stigma, and common good; social accountability; vulnerable populations; and ethical frameworks concerning community engagement. Students will critically explore ethical challenges in conducting public health research and practice in the U.S. and globally and ethical dimensions of community participation and engagement in public health.
Prerequisites: None.
Usually offered: Annually, spring semester.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 320 Systems & Stories: Health Care and the People Inside
Content: Use of patient narratives to better understand how the health care system impacts families and communities. The health care system in the United States, its historical evolution, and the challenges it faces in the 21st century. Role of government in health care; critical assessment of the current health care delivery system; health care reform and the future of the U.S. health care system. Use of technologies in health care; documentation of patient, family, and community health problems; the electronic health record; and the impact of culture on provider-patient interactions. This work will be completed through the lens of patient narratives-reading and collecting stories and teaching modules to add to the Northwest Narrative Medicine Collaborative (NWNM) digital library and the Health Story Hub.
Prerequisites: HEAL 210 or PSY 375.
Usually offered: Annually, fall semester.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 340 Epidemiology
Content: Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and determinants of health and disease in different human populations and the application of methods to improve disease outcomes. As such, epidemiology is the basic science of public health. In this course, students will learn and apply basic concepts of epidemiology to multiple domains of public health. We will illustrate and practice using epidemiology to better understand, characterize, and promote health at a population level. The class will engage the students in active and collaborative learning through team activities, individual projects, case studies, group discussion, and individual projects.
Prerequisites: ECON 103, MATH 105, MATH 123, MATH 255, or PSY 200.
Usually offered: Annually, spring semester.
Semester credits: 4.
HEAL 345 Health Studies Practicum: Special Topic
Content: Organized practicum in a health-related field, with strong academic, experiential, and pre-professional components. Anticipated special topics include peer counseling, narrative medicine, and health care administration.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required.
Usually offered: Annually, fall and spring semester.
Semester credits: 1-4.