| CODE | IRL5060 | |||||||||
| TITLE | Medicine and Public Health in Humanitarian Action | |||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | |||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | Not Applicable | |||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | |||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | International Relations | |||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Humanitarian emergencies are a common everyday occurrence across the globe. The economic and societal disruption and the direct and indirect impact on human lives vary depending on the region involved and on the state of preparedness and resilience of the respective areas. Managing such catastrophic events starts before the actual events do happen. The study unit aims to give students the necessary background knowledge to grasp the concept of the Emergency Planning Cycle - Mitigation and Hazard management, Planning, Response and Recovery. Disaster management aims to decrease the human loss, suffering and disability. Humanitarian assistance specifically alleviates the impact of disasters and above all addresses the health issues especially of the most vulnerable and the most affected. This study module will provide the foundations to better understand; 1. The practical problems and minimum standards which must be attained during any response to a Humanitarian crisis. 2. The short and long term human health impacts of famine, armed conflict and natural disasters 3. Ways to mitigate such health impacts through medical interventions 4. The identification of specific vulnerable populations 5. The process of humanitarian assistance during disasters (rapid needs- assessment, epidemiology in disaster situations, health management in camps) Study-unit Aims This study unit aims to: - Provide students with an overview of disaster classification and will examine the impact of disasters on the Health of Populations and on Health Systems - Explain the impact of disasters on human displacements - Make students familiar with the Emergency Planning Cycle. - Provide students an understanding of Communicable Diseases, Malnutrition and distribution of drugs and Medical Equipment - Elaborate on the psychological aspects in Humanitarian crisis - Provide an overview of a Maltese scenario - the Detention Centres experience Learning Outcomes 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Explain the impact of various types of disasters on Health of Populations and Health Systems - Account for the various types of medical responses to a humanitarian crises, and more specifically, the medical component to any humanitarian mission - Identify the key problems encountered during the response to disasters and discuss ways of addressing these various problems 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Draft their own plans to mitigate against disasters with particular emphasis on ways to counter problems that arise during such events, which events would further negatively affect human populations. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings Recommended readings: - Handbook of the Medical Care of Catastrophes - JSP Lumley - Disaster Management - A Disaster Manager 's Handbook- W Nick Carter - The Public Health Consequences of Disasters - Eric K Noji - Handbook of Disaster Medicine - Emergency medicine in mass casualty situations - Jan de Boer & Marcel Dubouloz - Refugee Health - An approach to emergency situations - Medecins Sans Frontieres - Emergency Management:Principles and Practice for Local Governments - Thomas E. Drabek Supplementary readings: - Frontieres Epidemiologic Surveillance after Natural Disasters - Pan American Health Organisation - Engineering in Emergencies - a practical guide for relief workers - Jan Davis & Robert Lambert - Refugee Health -An approach to emergency situations -Medecins Sans Frontieres - Epidemiologic Surveillance after Natural Disaster - Pan American Health Organisation - Mental health of Refugees - World Health Organisation - Handbook on war and Public Health - Dr. Pierre Perrin International Committee of teh Red Cross |
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| ADDITIONAL NOTES | Co-Requisite Study-units As prescribed within MA in Humanitarian Action |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | |||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Denis Vella Baldacchino |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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