Summer School: Global Health and Medical Studies

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You can see our Global Health and Medical Studies modules below.

Session One

26 June - 14 July 2023

• Critical Reflections on Global Health - NOT RUNNING FOR 2023

  Module code: IS446

  Unfortunately this module is not running for the 2023 Undergraduate Summer School. Check back here for details of the 2024 Undergraduate Summer School Programme later in the year.

  The health and wellbeing of people differs widely across the globe. Do you want to know why such differences exist and what you could do to reduce such disparities and contribute to make this world a better place to live in?

  In this summer school, we will explore the social, political, economic and cultural elements that explain global health disparities. We will introduce you to the concepts of globalisation and global health, illustrate the global burden of disease, and by doing so, we will deepen your understanding of the inequities and inequalities between and within countries and why we think they exist. Then, we will focus on the main global health stakeholders and ´global health´ governance. We will explore diverse science paradigms that have dominated the way we analyse and comprehend the process of being healthy and ill, as well as how we approach global health issues. We will touch on concepts such as determinants of health vs determination of health (a Latin-American theoretical construct), decolonialism and equitable discourses in global health. We will demonstrate using current global health case studies in the field and highlight the research skills and evidence needed to inform policy and practice. The course will be delivered by global health experts at BSMS and our collaborators from Universidad del Rosario, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Bogotá, Colombia led by Maria Cristina Quevedo-Gomez.

  Topics may include:

  1. Introduction to global health
  2. Global burden of disease
  3. Unequal world: colonialism, power, justice and ethics in global health
  4. Stakeholders in global health (global health governance)
  5. Doing global health research: equitable partnerships, collaboration and community participation - Practical examples from UK, Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa
  6. Culture, cultural competence and global health
  7. Global health in action- learning through film (film from the field)
  8. Latin-American scholars’ contribution to global health theory and action-research  

  Learning outcomes:

  • Demonstrate excellent understanding of current global health problems and their contributing factors
  • Demonstrate ability to critic terminologies and concepts used in global health e.g., equity, public health versus global health, developing versus developed countries, international health vs global health, interventions vs collective social action, social determinants approach vs social determination approach etc.
  • Understand the role of social, cultural, political, economic and other elements as determinants of health
  • Critically evaluate the diverse scientific and social paradigms that inform how we approach global health issues and employ a critical lens is assessing the role of decolonial discourses, power and equitable partnerships in global health
  • Demonstrate understanding of global health research process including participatory action-research and the challenges of doing research in global contexts

  Teaching method: Seminars, Workshops and Lectures
  Assessment: Observation 1 40%, Observation 2 40%, Reflective statement 20%
  Contact hours: 40 hours
  Credits: 15 Sussex Credits
  Level: 5

Session Two

17 July – 4 August 2023

• Basics of Medical Imaging with hands-on MRI - NOT RUNNING FOR 2023
  

  Important

  This is a 4-week module running from 17 July to 11 August 2023, one week longer than other Undergraduate Summer School modules. The total fees for this module will be £3,723, with the breakdown as follows:

  • tuition – £2,313
  • lab fee – £250
  • accommodation and campus programme fee – £1,160.

  Find out more about our fees and costs.

  Module code: IS447

  Unfortunately this module is not running for the 2023 Undergraduate Summer School. Check back here for details of the 2024 Undergraduate Summer School Programme later in the year.

  Medical Imaging is an umbrella term encompassing different techniques that depict the human body in order to diagnose and monitor medical conditions. Medical imaging plays a central role in medicine and global healthcare and has become indispensable in assessing and documenting the course of a wide range of diseases and response to treatment. Furthermore, medical imaging provides scientists with the tools necessary to develop, test, and track novel treatments for diseases such as cancer, dementias, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.

  Medical imaging is arguably the most multi-disciplinary field in modern science and technology. Development, implementation, and application of imaging methodology requires expertise from engineering, computer scientists, chemists, biologists, clinicians -- to mention a few. Medical imaging is also one of the areas where AI tools may prove crucial in narrowing the healthcare disparities across the globe. This course is designed with this diversity of students’ backgrounds in mind.

  The course will cover the fundamental principles of medical imaging, including the basics of the 4 major medical imaging methods: Ultrasound, X-Ray CT, PET, and MRI. The focus will be on MRI and how it is used to capture both the anatomy and function of the human brain. The course will also provide hands-on experience with acquiring brain images using a 3T MRI scanner. Students will learn how to process and characterize MRI images from healthy volunteers. Functional MRI (fMRI) data will be used to learn the basics of statistical analysis used in neuroscience research.

  Students will have the opportunity to interact with the MRI team and also with clinicians and neuroscientists who use the MRI for research.

  Learning outcomes:

  • Describe the fundamental physical principals underlying the major medical imaging technologies: X-Ray, Ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)
  • Describe the concept of a point spread function (PSF), line spread function (LSF), and modulation transfer function (MTF) and describe how one might measure them in a given imaging system 
  • Design a simple functional MRI paradigm and acquire the fMRI images on a 3T scanner. Describe how the concept of a point spread function (PSF) and modulation transfer function (MTF) are applied in MRI. Describe how spatial and temporal resolution interact in fMRI acquisitions.
  • Apply mathematical tools to analyse the fMRI images acquired on a 3T scanner.

  Teaching method: Lecture and MRI scanning sessions
  Assessment: Take home exam (30%), lab report (30%), presentation (30%), Participation and engagement (10%)
  Contact hours: 36 hours
  Credits: 15 Sussex Credits
  Labatory Fees: £250
  Level: 5

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