Registry

Module Specifications

Archived Version 2020 - 2021

Module Title	Perspectives on Health
Module Code	NS134
School	38
Online Module Resources
Module Co-ordinator	Dr Mark Philbin	Office Number	H245b
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5
Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

Description

In this module, learners explore various essential arguments about health and this orientates them to some key health issues which they subsequently encounter throughout the BSc Health & Society programme. Learners also focus upon the quality of health argumentation and how to judge the credibility of claims that are made about health matters. This contributes to their capacity for making scholarly arguments.

Learning Outcomes

1. Identify the principal elements in a well formed argument about health.
2. Describe some essential claims that are commonly made in accounts of health: as a matter of well-being; medical provenance; luck and choice; or justice.
3. Discuss these claims by reference to the quality of supporting arguments in terms of evidence, reasoning and response to counter-arguments.
4. Explore the practical, moral, social and political implications of various essential health claims.
5. Make a reasoned health argument which is informed by evidence and takes account of alternative viewpoints.

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full-time hours per semester
Lecture	11	Participation in lecture-discussion
Seminars	11	Linked to each lecture
Independent Study	33	Reading, use of library, Loop use
Assignment Completion	30	Preparation of four short essays
Directed learning	40	Preparation for and completion of examination
Total Workload: 125

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Judging and making health arguments
The elements of a well-formed argument are explored by reference to what counts as a justified claim about health. The role of doubt in scholarship is emphasised along with matters of supporting evidence, explicit reasoning, and taking account of alternative viewpoints.

Health as a matter of well-being
The idea of health as a state of "complete well-being" is considered in terms of the origins and value of this positive conception along with a noteable counter-argument that it is a "mirage."

Health as the provenance of medicine
The benefits of medicine are examined in terms of the health of populations and in the light of criticisms which emphasise "medical iatrogenesis" and "narratives of suffering."

Health from cosmic luck and personal choices
The "givenness" of health status is explored along with arguments about its moral and social implications. This is compared with health accounts in which matters of personal choice and responsibility are emphasised.

Health from justice
The notion of inequality is examined along with ideas about the relations between social justice and health.

Assessment Breakdown
Continuous Assessment	100%	Examination Weight	0%

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Course Work Breakdown

Reassessment Requirement
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; 1 = A resit is available for all components of the module 2 = No resit is available for 100% continuous assessment module 3 = No resit is available for the continuous assessment component
Unavailable

Indicative Reading List

Cederström, C.: 2015, The wellness syndrome, Polity Press, Malden,
Illich, I.: 1976, Limits to medicine, M. Boyars, London,
Wilkinson, R. & Pickett, K.: 2010, The spirit level: why equality is better for everyone, Penguin, London,
Wilkinson, I. & Kleinman, Arthur, A.: 2016, A passion for society: how we think about human suffering, University of California Press, Oakland,
Bambra, C.: 2016, Health divides: where you live can kill you, Policy Press, Bristol,
Frank, A.W.: 1995, The wounded storyteller, University of Chicago Press, Chicago,
Marmot, M.: 2005, The status syndrome, Henry Holt, New York,
Marmot, M.: 2016, The health gap: the challenge of an unequal world, Bloomsbury, London,
Pearl, S.: 2017, Face/on: face transplants and the ethics of the other, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago,
Segall, S.: 2010, Health, luck, and justice, Princeton University Press, Princeton,
Wolff, J.: 2012, The human right to health, W.W. Norton, New York,

Other Resources

None

Programme or List of Programmes

AFU	Age Friendly University Programme
BHS	Bachelor of Science in Health & Society

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