HSH759 - The Commercial and Economic Determinants of Health
| Year: | 2027 unit information |
|---|---|
| Enrolment modes: | Trimester 1: Online |
| Credit point(s): | 1 |
| EFTSL value: | 0.125 |
| Cohort rule: | Nil |
| Prerequisite: | Nil |
| Corequisite: | Nil |
| Study commitment: | Students will on average spend 150 hours over the teaching period undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit. |
| Scheduled learning activities - online: | Online independent and collaborative learning activities including 11 x 1.5 hour (recorded) lectures and 11 x 1 hour scheduled online seminars. |
Content
In this unit students are introduced to the theories, ideas and frameworks surrounding how markets, commercial practices and corporations shape health outcomes. The commercial drivers of health are also nested in broader dynamics of the global economic system. The commercial determinants of health have been described in terms of industrial epidemics (linking disease and ill-health to industrial products and practices) and the corporate determinants of health (reflecting the influence and reach of corporate products and processes which cause health harms).
Students will learn how the commercial determinants of health involve major economic sectors, such as agriculture, food processing, and fossil fuels. Corporations have strategies that have been used to limit regulation or to capture politics by means of lobbying and political donations, to further business interests and profitability, sometimes at the expense of human and planetary health outcomes.
Students will receive a grounding in these diverse influences on public health, policy, and patterns of human consumption. The economic determinants of health, more widely, encompass the diverse ways in which the global economy and its key institutions create opportunities for health as well as profound health inequalities. In this unit, various political economy approaches will therefore be used to understand how commerce, governance and capitalism interact with each other and health.
Students will learn how to articulate relationships in these terms and will receive two weeks of specialist data training relating to the commercial and the economic determinants of Health The unit grounds these approaches in authentic learning, looking at a sequence of major economic sectors: including, food, tobacco, fossil fuels, gambling, alcohol, and social media.
In this unit we look to: clarify the frameworks and ideas of the commercial and corporate determinants of health; assess the role of the actors involved in this space (e.g. corporations, industry groups, consumers and governments); identify the critical role of governance institutions (such as the World Trade Organisation) in shaping markets; explore the reasons why corporations that shape health outcomes are not subjected to public health or other regulatory measures that might diminish their health impacts; and examine how the global economy and its governance structures influence health and life chances.
Unit fee information
Fees and charges vary depending on the type of fee place you hold, your course, your commencement year, the units you choose to study and their study discipline, and your study load.
Tuition fees increase at the beginning of each calendar year and all fees quoted are in Australian dollars ($AUD). Tuition fees do not include textbooks, computer equipment or software, other equipment or costs such as mandatory checks, travel and stationery.
For further information regarding tuition fees, other fees and charges, invoice due dates, withdrawal dates, payment methods visit our Current Students website.