Global Health: Biosocial Perspective Case Studies
Explore global health issues through case studies and a biosocial lens in this Harvard course. Learn from leading experts in the field.
Explore global health issues through case studies and a biosocial lens in this Harvard course. Learn from leading experts in the field.
This course offers a unique approach to global health, framing complex issues through a biosocial perspective. Led by four physician-anthropologists from Harvard, it develops an interdisciplinary toolkit for analyzing historical and contemporary global health initiatives. The course covers the definition and construction of global health problems, and examines how interventions play out in various contexts. Key principles include fostering global awareness, building a foundation in social and historical analysis, engaging with ethical considerations, and inspiring positive action. Learners will critically evaluate ethical frameworks underpinning global health engagements and explore how to design effective programs that make meaningful changes in the lives of the world's most vulnerable populations. The course uses ethnographies and case studies to provide a nuanced understanding of global health challenges in relation to individuals, families, and communities.
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What you'll learn
Frame global health problems using a biosocial perspective
Apply interdisciplinary analytical approaches to examine global health initiatives
Evaluate ethical frameworks underpinning global health engagements
Develop a critical understanding of how global health problems are defined and constructed
Analyze the expected and unexpected outcomes of global health interventions
Gain insights into designing effective global health programs and policies
Skills you'll gain
This course includes:
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Graded assignments, exams
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Limited Access access
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Module Description
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to global health from a biosocial perspective. It covers the conceptualization and analysis of global health problems, the evaluation of health interventions, and the ethical considerations in global health work. The curriculum is designed to develop critical thinking skills and a nuanced understanding of complex health issues in diverse cultural contexts. Learners will explore case studies from various regions, including Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, and the Americas, to gain insights into how global health initiatives are implemented and their impacts. The course emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary approaches, combining insights from medicine, anthropology, sociology, and ethics to address global health challenges effectively.
Fee Structure
Instructors
1 Course
Pioneering Medical Anthropologist Transforming Global Mental Health and Cultural Psychiatry
Arthur Kleinman, born March 11, 1941, has revolutionized the fields of medical anthropology, cultural psychiatry, and global mental health over a five-decade career at Harvard University. After earning his MD from Stanford Medical School and MA in social anthropology from Harvard, he has built an extraordinary career combining psychiatry with anthropological insights. As the Esther and Sidney Rabb Professor of Anthropology and Professor of Medical Anthropology and Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, he has authored seven influential books including "The Illness Narratives," "Rethinking Psychiatry," and most recently "The Soul of Care," while co-authoring four others and co-editing 29 volumes. His groundbreaking research in China since 1978 has transformed understanding of mental health across cultures, while his concept of "social suffering" has influenced fields from global health to humanitarian response. Through founding the journal Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry and directing Harvard's Asia Center (2008-2016), he has shaped multiple disciplines while mentoring over 100 PhD students. His numerous honors include membership in the National Academy of Medicine and American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Franz Boas Award from the American Anthropological Association, and his work continues to influence global mental health policy and practice through research on aging, caregiving, and social technology in China.
1 Course
Pioneering Global Health Champion Who Revolutionized Healthcare for the World's Poor
Paul Edward Farmer (1959-2022) transformed global health through his groundbreaking work combining medical anthropology, clinical care, and social justice. After earning his MD and PhD from Harvard University, where he became the Kolokotrones University Professor and Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine, he co-founded Partners In Health (PIH) in 1987, which grew from a small clinic in Haiti to an international organization operating in 12 countries. His innovative community-based treatment strategies demonstrated that high-quality healthcare could be delivered in resource-poor settings, pioneering successful approaches to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other diseases. Under his leadership, PIH developed groundbreaking programs in Haiti, Rwanda, and other countries, achieving some of the highest cure rates for multi-drug resistant tuberculosis and preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission. His extensive writings, including influential books like "Mountains Beyond Mountains" and "Pathologies of Power," shaped global health discourse while advocating for health as a human right. Farmer's work earned numerous honors and demonstrated that complex medical treatments could succeed in poor settings when combined with social support. Until his unexpected death in Rwanda in 2022, he continued serving as UN Special Adviser on Community-Based Medicine while treating patients, teaching at Harvard, and advocating for global health equity.
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