HMB342H1 Summer 2020

Epidemiology of Health & Disease

Department of Human Biology, University of Toronto, St. George Campus

Course Instructor: Dr. Christine Wong

Email: cjaye.wong@utoronto.ca

Synchronous sessions: Wednesdays 4:10-5 pm EDT (Toronto time)

Course Overview

This course engages students in the fundamental science of epidemiology applied to health and
disease. After an introduction to various measures of health and disease, the scientific methods
used to investigate, analyze, prevent and control health problems will be illustrated using
biomedical and public health examples. This course will focus substantially on epidemiology in a
global health context.
Prerequisite: 9 FCE complete, BIO120H1, BIO130H1
Exclusion: HST373H1
Recommended Preparation: HMB325H1 or other statistics course

Required Course Texts:

• Celentano & Szko. Gordis Epidemiology (6th Edition). Elsevier, 2019
• Additional readings will be identified from medical/epidemiology journals on the course
Quercus site.

Course Evaluation:
PeppeR participation Weekly participation throughout term 15%
Online Quizzes Weekly as per schedule, best 4 of 5 (4X2%) 8%
Podcast Presentation & July 24 7%
Podcast Planning Document
Midterm exam (Covers July 29 20%
Weeks 1 – 3 material)
Build – a – lecture August 3 5%
Powerpoint slide
Annotated Bibliography August 7 10%

Podcast August 14 10%

Final exam Held during final assessment period 25%

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 Course Schedule (Lecture topics may change based on current events):

Week Topic Online Tutorial Evaluations

Week 1: July 6 Introduction to incidence & Podcast Groupings

prevalence; Cohort studies
July 8 (4:10-5 pm Lecture Bb Collaborate Help Session
EDT)
July 10 (9 am EDT) Quiz 1
start
Week 2: July 13 Case control studies; Randomized Case Control Tutorial
controlled trials
July 15 (4:10-5 pm Lecture Bb Collaborate Help Session
EDT)
July 17 (9 am EDT) Quiz 2
start

Week 3: July 20 Measures of mortality Build-a-Lecture

July 22 (4:10-5 pm Lecture Bb Collaborate Help Session

EDT)
July 24 (9 am EDT) Quiz 3
start
July 24 Podcast Presentation
& Podcast Planning
Document
Week 4: July 27 Association and causation; Systematic Critical Analysis Tutorial
reviews
July 29 Midterm Exam (Covers Weeks 1, 2, 3
material)
July 31 (9 am EDT) Quiz 4
start
Week 5: August 3 Disease screening; Infectious disease Vaccine & Autism Tutorial

August 3 Build-a-lecture
Powerpoint slide
August 5 (4:10-5 pm Lecture Bb Collaborate Help Session
EDT)
August 7 (9 am EDT) Quiz 5
start
August 7 Annotated
Bibliography

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Week 6: August 10 Build-a-lecture; Chronic health & built Cellphones Tutorial
environment
August 5 (4:10-5 Lecture Bb Collaborate Help Session
pm EDT)
August 14 Podcast
TBA, Final Final Exam
Assessment Period

Course Details

On-line quizzes: There will be four on-line quizzes; the best three will be counted towards the final
grade. All questions are multiple choice or simple word answers.
◦The weeks during which the online quizzes are posted on the course schedule.
◦The quizzes will be available for 3 days.
◦The quizzes will appear on Quercus at 9AM EST (Toronto time) on the Friday and the link will disappear
72 hours later.
◦The quizzes can be written three times during the 72 hours that they are available.
◦There will be no makeup quizzes for any reason.

Exams: Both the midterm and final exams will be held online through the course Quercus site. All tests
are secure documents and students are expected NOT to discuss the content with other students. If
there is any evidence found of plagiarism, personation, sharing questions or sharing test-related
material, the students will be in breach of academic integrity and may be subject to academic penalties.
The midterm exam will be held on the date indicated on the course schedule while the final exam will be
held during the final assessment period as scheduled by the Faculty of Arts and Science. Do not make
any plans until you know the final exam date. Students who miss a test for genuine, documented
medical reasons, use the self-declared absence form via ACORN as well as submitting a declaration to
HMB using the link provided below (see: HMB Missed Assessment Form). The format of the make-up
test will not necessarily be the same as the original test. You will be contacted upon verification of the
submitted document.

Assignments: Course assignments are due at the times indicated on the assignment instruction sheets;
submission instructions will be provided for each assignment. Assignments submitted for evaluation are
also required to be submitted to TurnItIn, with access information to this website provided on the
course Quercus site. If a late assignment is accepted, a penalty of 10% per day (including weekends) will
be applied to that assignment.

Unofficial course websites: In the past, students have set up course websites on Facebook etc.
Information on these sites should be treated with suspicion. For example, do not rely on these sites for
information about what is on the tests or exam, or when or where the tests will take place. Also
students should verify information with another source such as the textbook, course syllabus, or the
instructor.

Turn It In: This course uses Turnitin. All written assignments will be required to be submitted to
turnitin.com through the Quercus submission window. “Normally, students will be required to submit
their course essays to Turnitin.com for a review of textual similarity and detection of possible plagiarism.
In doing so, students will allow their essays to be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com

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reference database, where they will be used solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism. The terms
that apply to the University’s use of the Turnitin.com service are described on the Turnitin.com web
site”. (Academic Handbook, section 2.15)
Copyright Infringement: Course materials are not your intellectual property. Do not post any course
materials (lecture, tutorial, test materials, etc) to any third party websites.

Course Communication: Students are responsible for ensuring they receive all course announcements
and Emails from the instructor or TA. Failure to receive notifications or Emails is not an acceptable
excuse for missing assignment details. Dr Wong will only be checking her U of T Email account for
student communications – do not use the Quercus messaging system for important communications
about this course or course work.

MISSED ASSESSMENT POLICY

This course follows the University of Toronto’s Policies on missed tests and assignments and follows the
Human Biology Program’s procedures for missed tests and assignments. Students are expected to
follow these policies and procedures, and leniency will not be granted to students who do not adhere
to these procedures. Please note that this policy applies to everything due in this course.
For written assignments with due dates known well in advance, short-term illnesses are not
considered a valid reason to waive a late penalty.

Steps for missed assessments with a valid reason only:

1. Fill out the

HMB Missed Assessment Form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HMB_20205_Missed

• A copy of this form and its details will be emailed to you and to your instructor; this is
how you notify your course instructor.

2. If late assignments are accepted, the ASSSIGNMENT IS STILL DUE. Do NOT wait for confirmation
from the program office to submit, because confirmation will not come.

If you missed a presentation and a make up is expected, contact your instructor directly to
schedule the make up after you have completed Step 1.

Please note that the HMB Missed Assessment must be submitted within five (5) business dates of
the missed test/quiz date or assignment deadline.

EXTENSION REQUESTS & PENALTY FOR LATE ASSIGNMENTS

Contact the Instructor by email to request the extension at least ONE WEEK prior to the due
date. Extensions will not be granted if this step is not followed. Complete Step 1 listed above.
NOTE: In any case, the ASSIGNMENT IS STILL DUE with a maximum extension of ONE WEEK if the above
is followed and the reason validated. Do NOT wait for confirmation from the program office to
submit, because confirmation will not come. An extension beyond the initial extension is only possible
under exceptional circumstance

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Accessibility Accommodations: Students with diverse learning styles and needs are welcome in this
course. In particular, if you have a disability/health consideration that may require accommodations,
please feel free to approach me and/or Accessibility Services at (416) 978 8060; accessibility.utoronto.ca
(Academic Handbook, 2.19)

Academic Integrity: The University of Toronto treats cases of academic misconduct very seriously.
Academic integrity is a fundamental value of learning and scholarship at the UofT. Participating
honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in this academic community ensures that your UofT degree
is valued and respected as a true signifier of your individual academic achievement.

The University of Toronto’s Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters outlines the behaviours that
constitute academic misconduct, the processes for addressing academic offences, and the penalties that
may be imposed. You are expected to be familiar with the contents of this document. Potential offences
include, but are not limited to:

In papers and assignments:

•Using someone else’s ideas or words without appropriate acknowledgement.
•Submitting your own work in more than one course.
•Making up sources or facts.
•Obtaining or providing unauthorized assistance on any assignment (this includes working in groups on
assignments that are supposed to be individual work).

Any instance of suspected academic dishonesty will be reported to the Office of Student Academic
Integrity. For further information on you may wish to visit http://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/osai/resources
and http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice

Health & Wellness: The university experience can be a challenging one, there is no need to go about it
alone. If you or anyone you know could use someone to talk to (or text with), here are some resources
in addition to your instructors, program coordinators, and TAs:
• Your college registrar and office of residence of student life (ORSL)
• MySSP [24/7, talk in 146 languages & text in 35 languages]: available on Apple App Store and Google
Play Store.
• Good 2 Talk Student Helpline [24/7]: 1-866-925-5454
• Gerstein Centre [24/7]: 416-929-5200

July 6, 2020