HHS 490F: Topics in Health - Introduction to Health Care Professions

Course Description

Many students arrive on campus believing they want to pursue health care. Students are determined to become physicians, dentists and nurses among other health related vocations.
Unfortunately, most students don’t fully understand the pathway and challenges that accompany this journey. Too often, students end up suffering through courses they don’t like, don’t want to take and can’t tolerate. They get “weeded out” and are stuck starting over in regards to their major and/or eventual career goal. Even worse is finding out you don’t like the career you’ve chosen after working so diligently to get there. This class will help students understand and navigate the pathway through health care related studies. Topics we will discuss in this course include:
1. Why am I choosing a career in healthcare?
2. How do I get there (medical, dental, nursing school)?
3. What is healthcare truly about?
4. What are some of the obstacles?
Basic science concepts will be integrated as they relate to clinical medicine. We will discuss how race, ethnicity, sexuality and socioeconomic status affect health care. This course will aim to examine the delivery of health care from a wider lens than just the medicine. (F, W, S).