Applied Health Sciences MSc Online

University of Aberdeen

Hardly a day goes by without new statistics in the media. The headlines may be eye-catching but, even if interpreted correctly, many of us have only the vaguest idea of how they?re produced. You?ll find out how, and explore the potential, mechanics and limitations of statistics. You?ll learn the statistical concepts involved in the design, analysis and interpretation of research in healthcare settings, covering data types and how data is presented.

You?ll gain a detailed theoretical and practical understanding of the latest methods used to assess the nutritional status of a person, their dietary intake, and the nutritional composition of food. You?ll learn to perform dietary assessments and to understand current dietary guidelines and the issues surrounding them.

This course will give you a picture of the current global nutritional status. You?ll focus on low and middle-income countries (LMIC) but your learning is widely applicable to all populations globally.

You?ll study the role of nutrition in disease, covering: how the disease process affects metabolism; nutrient-gene interactions involved in disease development how diseases change the nutrient requirements of the body; specific nutritional deficiencies in acute and chronic illness; metabolic syndrome, type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, gut health and cancer.

This course will take you through the process of designing a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) from start to finish. RCTs are the ?gold standard? test for proving a new drug or treatment is better than an existing one. You will learn how these trials are used in the evaluation of real-world healthcare and public health settings. You?ll develop your knowledge and awareness of: how to design a fair test; the appropriate use of trials and alternative trial designs; involving patients and the public; the logistics and practicalities of designing real-world trials; the role of clinical trials units.

This includes an introduction to disease measurement at a population level and basic epidemiological study design and analysis. You?ll explore: causality and associations; measures of disease occurrence; different types of study design ? and the pros and cons for each populations; sampling; validity and reliability.

Our Evidence-Based Health course is designed to give you a solid foundation in the understanding and application of evidence-based health at an individual and population level. It focuses on the use of systematic reviews to synthesise evidence. You?ll also explore how evidence is used to inform health practice and policy.

In this course, you?ll: learn to apply the scientific principles of nutrition to have a real, positive impact on public health; focus on the basic biochemistry and physiology relevant to human nutrition, to understand how the body works and how it responds to the food we eat studying metabolism; gain detailed knowledge of the digestion, absorption and metabolism of carbohydrates, protein, fat, alcohol, vitamins and minerals, as well as energy balance and metabolism.

This course will introduce you to the fundamentals of health research methods, including: developing research proposals formulating research questions identifying appropriate study designs collecting data.

You?ll cover the core topics in health economics, including: key concepts of supply and demand and how these apply to health care; analysis of the main alternative systems for organising and financing health care; resource allocation and priority setting in health care; analysis of the main policy interventions in population; health behaviours and the role of behavioural economics; fundamental concepts in economic evaluation; costing and benefit measurement; the rationale behind economic evaluation techniques.

You?ll study the breadth of health informatics, exploring ways to use health informatics research to improve public health and healthcare. As well as learning the key methodological considerations, you?ll examine the legal and ethical challenges involved in the collection of personal health data.

You?ll build your awareness of the diverse and dynamic field of global health. You?ll study: inequalities; different countries? and multi-country organisations? approaches to disease prevention and management; factors that affect global health, including housing and education; international government policies and commitments; the contributions of research to informing evidence-led approaches to global health improvement.

Explore the molecular landscape of nutrition, and the interaction between nutrients and our bodies. Join our internationally experienced team of health and molecular nutrition researchers online to: gain a theoretical understanding of the links between diet-related diseases and molecular-signalling responses to dietary metabolites; investigate the mechanisms involved in dietary responses at the molecular level in cells, tissue, organ and whole-body systems, including the gut microbiota; find out how data science can be used to uncover molecular interactions with nutrients within our bodies.

You?ll study topics including: diet and nutrition across the life course; integration and adaptability of different metabolic pathways, eg, starvation, exercise; the role of diet in the development of diseases, including cancer and cardiovascular disease. Your course is divided into units, each one focusing on a different stage of life. You?ll begin at conception and birth, move through childhood and adolescence, and into adulthood and the requirements of old age.

You?ll cover the three major areas of public health: Healthcare evaluation; Health protection; Health promotion. Within these, you?ll cover the core concepts of public health, including identifying populations at risk, monitoring public health, the burden of ill-health, effective intervention and health inequalities.

Qualitative research seeks to understand the ?how? and ?why? of phenomena or human behaviours. Qualitative researchers use a variety of methods to develop deeper understanding of how people perceive their social realities and, in consequence, how they act within the social world. This course will introduce you to these qualitative approaches. More than just studying these methods, you?ll gain hands-on experience, engaging in qualitative research yourself.

You?ll investigate the many facets of sustainable diets, including nutrition, environmental impact, socio-cultural contexts and economics. We take an interdisciplinary approach to this important topic. And you?ll look at the drivers and challenges presented in trying to create sustainable diets around the world.

This course will introduce you to key concepts in advanced regression modelling which can be applied to a range of data. It will cover some of the theory underlying different regression models and then take a practical approach to teach you how to investigate data in different contexts.

This course challenges you to engage robustly with questions about what is good and right (and why) in public health policy and practice. You?ll develop your ability to critique and participate effectively in debates about what matters ? and what is morally justified ? in efforts to improve the health and wellbeing of communities and populations. You?ll develop the knowledge and confidence to identify value-based assumptions. And you?ll examine a range of real-world health problems, and practice justifying and objecting to different strategies for addressing them.

You?ll study the many issues that affect women?s health globally. You?ll cover low-, middle- and high-income countries, but primarily focus on developing countries. You?ll review and discuss the latest information, WHO recommendations and policies informing actions to improve women?s health outcomes, including: the UN?s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals; the WHO?s Global Strategy for Women?s, Children?s, and Adolescents? Health.