Health Sciences

This honors-level course equips students with a comprehensive understanding and practical skills for embracing a holistic approach to healthy living. The curriculum empowers individuals to make informed decisions about nutrition, while cultivating habits that contribute to overall well-being. Through engaging discussions, in-depth research, and critical analysis of scientific studies, students integrate theoretical knowledge into practical applications. The course provides a strong foundation in holistic health, enabling informed choices and sustainable practices for lifelong wellness. Students maintain a health journal, recording insights and progress as topics are explored. Topics include Unpacking Your Beliefs about Health & Nutrition, Whole Foods vs Processed Foods, Macronutrients & Micronutrients, Becoming Literate in Nutritional Labels, Protein Packed Punch: The Science Behind Proteins, Careful with Carbs, Breaking Down Food: The Digestive System, and more. 

This interdisciplinary course introduces the field of public health, highlighting its distinct role from clinical medicine and its collaborative approach to complex health issues. Students explore topics such as health promotion, disease prevention, and global health through an interdisciplinary lens, incorporating insights from social sciences, natural sciences, mathematics, economics and political sciences. Real-world case studies demonstrate the interplay between biological, environmental, social, and economic factors affecting health outcomes. The course emphasizes applying public health frameworks to understand the design, implementation, and evaluation of health interventions. Students learn how theories and methods from various disciplines converge to address public health challenges and improve population health. Group projects simulate real-world public health scenarios and encourage students to integrate diverse perspectives, develop innovative solutions, and communicate effectively within interdisciplinary teams. Students gain a thorough understanding of how interdisciplinary approaches are vital for addressing complex public health issues and are prepared to apply these methods in future practice.

This course provides students with an introductory overview of health systems and policies that can shape an individual’s and the population’s wellbeing. The course uses Singapore’s healthcare system as a case study to explain the organization of health systems and the policy responses to public health challenges.

This course provides clear understanding of the different types of environmental exposures that are related with pathogenic mechanisms of human diseases. The first section reviews the natural environment (land, water, air, energy) and its impact on health indicators as well as nutritional content of food and nutraceuticals. The second section focuses on the built environment (housing, urban vs. rural landscapes, transport, work) and the relation of our living conditions with health outcomes. The third section reviews the effects of the psychosocial environment (mental health, stress, socialization, financial status) on the public health. The fourth section expands on the microenvironment features (microbiome) and the epigenetic effects (gene-by-environment interactions) that modulate disease mechanisms. The final section of the course focuses on the combined and synergistic impact of all different types of the environment on health indicators. It also showcases the added value of multidisciplinary approaches to evaluate the combined impact of environment on health and disease.

Modern healthcare has changed the way we approach medicine. We are now increasingly in charge of our health, assuming new roles in seeking information, understanding rights and responsibilities, and making health decisions. Underlying these demands, however, are the needs for the knowledge and skills to navigate the sea of information (and misinformation) to make smart decisions about health. Health literacy goes beyond having the basic ability of understanding and applying language, literacy and numeracy skills to process health information. It is also about having the knowledge, confidence and skills to interpret information. This course will equip students with the necessary skills and knowledge to understand health information to the fullest, empower them to make informed decisions, to question the reliability of information, and to think critically about scientific evidence. 

This course introduces the basic human structure and life phenomena to students coming from non-medical backgrounds. The content of each lecture covers basic concepts from anatomy and the associated physiology to clinical diseases and their treatments. 

This course introduces the physiological characteristics, nutritional requirements, and common nutritional issues at various stages of life. It covers dietary guidelines, the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) for the population, and findings from national nutrition surveys. Additionally, the basic principles of dietary planning are covered to provide a comprehensive understanding of nutrition across the lifespan.   

The course will revolve around the pivotal aspects of drug delivery, encompassing the introduction of the development of drug delivery technologies and systems, the application of drug delivery techniques in pharmaceutical research and development, a categorization outlining the materials, designs, and applications of mainstream drug delivery systems, as well as the arrangement of corporate visits to enhance students' comprehension of drug delivery.

The course provides students with an understanding of qualitative and quantitative approaches to research, and the key characteristics of common research designs applicable to nursing and healthcare, (qualitative, quantitative, and participatory approaches) linked to the theories that underpin them. Sampling and data collection methods are introduced. An understanding of research governance, ethics, and user involvement are developed.