Class Public Health

This course unit introduces students to Public Health as a field of knowledge focused on protecting and improving the health of populations, preventing disease, promoting health and reducing inequalities. The course unit builds on the conceptual foundations of Public Health, integrating health determinants, health systems and policies, and intervention planning, as well as the main challenges associated with communicable and non-communicable diseases. Particular attention is given to the contribution of the pharmacist as a Public Health practitioner, within the community, in health services and in collaboration with other professionals and sectors. Throughout the course unit, students are challenged to interpret real-world problems, draw on evidence and propose context-specific solutions. The final project utilises PBL to apply a conceptual framework for health promotion to the design of an intervention relevant to health priorities in Portugal.

Not applicable

Foundations of Public Health: concepts and evolution; demographic and epidemiological transitions; social, commercial and environmental determinants; inequalities and health indicators. Health systems and policies: health systems; primary health care, Alma-Ata, universal health coverage and Health in All Policies. Health promotion: Ottawa Charter; participation, empowerment, health literacy and equity; conceptual frameworks and behaviour change models; needs and priorities. Evidence-based Public Health: critical appraisal; plans, programmes and projects; evaluation and indicators; Communicable diseases: HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, emerging diseases, pandemics, vaccination, antimicrobial resistance and One Health. Non-communicable diseases: cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, respiratory diseases and cancer; pharmacists' role in prevention and risk management. Emerging challenges: digital health, demographic and environmental change; interprofessional collaboration.

The course combines short, focused lectures with active-learning methods, including case discussion, debate, critical appraisal, journal clubs, collaborative work, prioritisation and indicator-design exercises, and fieldwork. The final assignment follows a Problem-Based Learning (PBL) approach. Students start from an authentic or plausible Public Health problem, preferably linked to national priorities and opportunities for pharmacist intervention. In small groups, they identify prior knowledge and learning needs, formulate learning questions, independently search for evidence, reintegrate findings in tutorial discussion, select and justify an appropriate health-promotion conceptual framework, and develop an evidence-informed intervention proposal. The teacher acts as a facilitator, supporting autonomy, argumentation, collaboration and critical reflection rather than providing a predefined solution.

Goldsteen, R. L., Goldsteen, K., & Dwelle, T. L. (2014). Introduction to public health: Promises and practice (2nd ed.). Springer Publishing Company. Levy, B. S., & Gaufin, J. R. (Eds.). (2012). Mastering public health: Essential skills for effective practice. Oxford University Press. World Health Organization. (2021). Health promotion glossary of terms 2021. World Health Organization.