- City: London
- Term: Winter course with field component during Spring
- Instruction in: English
- Requirements: Students must be in HSSP
- Students interested in: Pre-health, Public health
Students will explore different factors related to society, policy, communities, and other constructs and examine how they differ between the United States and the United Kingdom.
On-Campus component: ALA 109 (2 credits) — ALA 109 is taken by all first-year HSSP students and builds upon ALA 106, taken in the fall semester. In this course, students continue to explore the history of our health care system, health policy, health disparities, social determinants of health, the opioid epidemic, and other pressing health and health care issues in America. Students also compare and contrast our health care system to those in different countries, noting how ours is better or worse in terms of quality of care, cost, and access.
Off-component component ( 2 credits)— The U.K. has much better overall health indicators than the U.S., but their system is not perfect either. Students will think about both historical and contemporary factors to understand how these systems are so different. U.K. culture is different than U.S. culture, and therefore, students will examine how this affects perceptions and actions regarding health and health care in both places. All of this will allow students to think about the overarching question of how, if at all, the U.S. could improve its health care system by learning from the U.K.
The program is led by UM instructor Adam B. Eickmeyer, MPH, Academic Director, Health Sciences Scholars Program.
