The course Medical Sociology is a compulsory course in the fifth year of the Integrated Undergraduate and Graduate University Study of Medicine and consists of 10 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars. The course carries 1 ECTS, and is performed at the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities in Medicine, in the premises of the Faculty of Health Studies (code Z) and the Faculty of Medicine (code P), or through the MS Teams platform (tbc in case of COVID-19). The content of the course is as follows: LECTURE TOPICS: 1. Introduction to the course 2. Theoretical approaches in medical sociology 3. Special topics in medical sociology 4. Social inequalities in health and disease 5. Social factors of health and disease I 6. Social factors of health and disease II 7. Models and social experience of health 8. Professionalization of medical profession 9. Medicalisation of society 10. Pandemics and society SEMINAR TOPICS: 1. Public policies and health: social and health policy 2. Social determinants of health and disease 3. Socially excluded groups, social capital and health 4. Mental health of medical students and health professionals 5. Physician-patient relationship Teaching: Classes are held in the form of lectures and seminars, with a total duration of 6 weeks. By completing all teaching activities and taking the final exam, the student acquires 1 ECTS credit. Lectures (10 P) - classic (ex-department / online) lectures with the possibility of involving students and short videos; gathering theoretical knowledge and information based on examples Seminars (10 C) - interactive teaching based on examples through the use of the method of conversation,
Kolegij Medicinska sociologija je obvezni kolegij na petoj godini Integriranog preddiplomskog i diplomskog sveučilišnog studija Medicina i sastoji se od 10 sati predavanja i 10 sati seminara u tri grupe (A, B i C), pri čemu svaku grupu čine 1-6 grupe s vježbi kolegija Pedijatrija. Kolegij nosi 1 ECTS, te se izvodi na Katedri za društvene i humanističke znanosti u medicini, u prostorijama Fakulteta zdravstvenih studija (oznaka Z) i Medicinskog fakulteta (oznaka P), odnosno putem MS Teams platforme, work on seminar assignments.
Power point presentations from lectures
1. Michael Haralambos & Martin Holborn (2013) Sociology : themes and perspectives (8th edition) (selected chapters), Collins Educational 2. Peter Conrad (2007) Medicalization of Society – On the Transformation of Human Conditions into Treatable Diseases, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 3. van Dijk W, Faber MJ, Tanke MA, Jeurissen PP, Westert GP. Medicalisation and overdiagnosis: what society does to medicine. Int J Health Policy Manag. 2016; 5(11):619–622. doi:10.15171/ijhpm.2016.121 4. Ivan Illich (1975): Medical Nemesis: The Expropriation of Health, Calder & Boyars Selected reading: http://www.columbia.edu/itc/hs/pubhealth/rosner/g8965/client_edit/readings/week_2/illich.pd
Attendance at classes (lectures and seminars) is mandatory in a way that records will be kept with the aim of insight into the minimum attendance of 70%. Attendance will not be scored, but if the student misses more than 30% (7 hours, not days!) he/she is no able to take the final exam. The following activity is scored during classes: a) writing a policy letter: students are expected to write a one-page policy letter on a topic that is closest to their interests and related to problems they may encounter in their future professional work: the position of the profession, physicians, health professionals, patients, specific disease, treatment procedure, regulation of Croatian health care, health insurance, any social issues that affect health, etc. Since students will write from the role of their future professional expertise, it is expected that the topic choose to be from the field of health or from any other field (eg a social problem such as poverty or an environmental problem such as pollution) that has consequences for health. At the seminar, students will be explained instructions for creating assignments, criteria for evaluating assignments and present examples of well-done assignments.
ECTS credit grading system: Student assessment is carried out according to the current Regulations on Studies of the University of Rijeka (consolidated text), from 5 June 2018. https://www.uniri.hr/files/staticki_dio/propisi_i_dokumenti/Pravilnik_o_studijima_Sveucilista_u _Rijeci_procisceni_tekst_5_lipnja_2018.pdf Student work will be evaluated and graded during classes and at the final exam. The student gains points by completing the set tasks and taking the exam. Of the maximum 50 grade points that can be achieved during the course, the student must collect a minimum of 25 grade points to take the final exam. The exam threshold on the final exam cannot be less than 50% of the successfully passed test. The final grade is the sum of the percentages achieved during classes and in the final exam. Student assessment is performed using the ECTS scale (A, B, C, D and F) and the number system (1-5). Students who collect between 40 and 49.99 points are graded F (unsuccessful) and must re-enroll in the course.
During classes, the following is evaluated
a) Student seminar papers
ACTIVITY EXPLANATION NUMB ER OF POINT S DEADLINE (D) Submission of the letter by the agreed deadline for submission 5 PAGE PROPISTIONS (PP) Margins: 2,5 cm (both sides) = 1 point Line spacing: 1,0 line = 1 point Font Tipe: Times New Roman = 1 point Font size: 12 = 1 point 4 LETTER PROPOSITIONS (LP) Correct addressing (relevant institution) = 1 point Correct titling (relevant person) = 1 point Presentation and inclusion of return address = 1 point Hendwritten signature = 1 point 4 SCOPE OF THE LETTER (SL) Letter length – letter up to 1 page long = 4 points 2 LETTER STYLE (LS) Professionalism = 1 point Balancing = 1 point 2 TOPIC (T) Specificity of the topic (one specific problem) = 4 points Actuality of the topic = 4 points 8 SELECTION OF RECIPIENT (SP) Relevance of the recipient for the selected issue = 5 points 5 REASON FOR WRITING (RW) Clarity of motivation for writing a letter = 5 points Advocacy for public interest = 4 points Connecting with experience = 4 points 13 SOURCES (S) Reference to applicable laws, data and research = 4 points Accuracy of citing laws, data sources and research = 3 points 7 TOTAL: 50
ACTIVITY
EXPLANATION
NUMB ER OF POINT
DEADLINE (D)
Submission of the letter by the agreed deadline for submission
5
PAGE PROPISTIONS (PP)
Margins: 2,5 cm (both sides) = 1 point Line spacing: 1,0 line = 1 point Font Tipe: Times New Roman = 1 point Font size: 12 = 1 point
4
LETTER PROPOSITIONS (LP)
Correct addressing (relevant institution) = 1 point Correct titling (relevant person) = 1 point Presentation and inclusion of return address = 1 point Hendwritten signature = 1 point
4
SCOPE OF THE LETTER (SL)
Letter length – letter up to 1 page long = 4 points
2
LETTER STYLE (LS)
Professionalism = 1 point Balancing = 1 point
2
TOPIC (T)
Specificity of the topic (one specific problem) = 4 points Actuality of the topic = 4 points
8
SELECTION OF RECIPIENT (SP)
Relevance of the recipient for the selected issue = 5 points
5
REASON FOR WRITING (RW)
Clarity of motivation for writing a letter = 5 points Advocacy for public interest = 4 points Connecting with experience = 4 points
13
SOURCES (S)
Reference to applicable laws, data and research = 4 points Accuracy of citing laws, data sources and research = 3 points
7
TOTAL:
50
b) Final exam (up to 50 points) The final test brings students a maximum of 50% of the grade, ie 50 points. There are no negative points on the test. All questions from the test will be from the lectures and the handout materials. The test is designed in the form of short questions with the possibility of choosing the correct answer. The exam will be organized through the Merlin platform at a time agreed with the students.
Class attendance Attendance at classes is determined by roll call at the beginning of the class. After the roll call, it is possible to participate in the class, but attendance will not be scored. The student is obliged to be present at least 70% of each form of teaching (lectures / seminars), a total of at minimum 7 hours of lectures + 7 hours of seminars. Any finding of concealment of someone's absence or misrepresentation and other similar violations of normal norms of conduct will be sanctioned. Except during consultations and by appointment, teachers are also available by official e-mail. Every communication via e-mail must be signed, we are not obliged to respond to unsigned mail. Written works Students submit a policy letter in writing by the deadline for submission. Students should keep copies of papers until the obligations on the course are fulfilled. Delay and / or non-performance of tasks All possible sanctions in terms of delays, non-fulfillment of obligations and the like, are explained in more detail in the description of specific activities. Academic honesty Students and teachers are expected to respect each other, decency, perform duties and behave responsibly, but also behave equally towards obligations. Both teachers and students should set an example by their behavior. It is of course possible to make omissions, but it is important to understand that this is an omission (and not a wrong intention!). Any form of coercion or discrimination is considered a serious violation of the university academin integrity norms. Documents available to students and teachers: Code of Ethics for Students of the Medical Faculty of the University of Rijeka, Rules of Procedure of the Ethics Committee for the Protection of Academic Integrity, Preservation of Dignity and Promoting the Reputation of the Medical Faculty of the University of Rijeka. Contacting teachers Probably the most secure form of communication is via official email. The course leader is responsible for general inquiries about the course. If there are specific inquiries about individual seminar assignments, students can contact the assistants directly. The course leader and assistants will acknowledge receipt of the message and respond to any student inquiries. If the student does not receive a response, please do not hesitate to contact us again (in case of failure to send mail). In accordance with the Decree on Personal Data Protection, course lecturers are obliged to respond exclusively to emails sent from the official address (xxx@uniri.hr) Informing about the subject.
All information about the course will be available to students during / until the end of the class, and published on Merlin. Any ignorance of the obligations is the sole responsibility of the student. Delays in fulfilling obligations are acceptable, but as a rule carry the loss of certain points (unless otherwise regulated). Expected general competencies of students when enrolling in the course No specific competencies are required to enroll in the course, although students are expected to have a basic background and skills in Internet browsing and computer use, and to use English.