Special Topics

Winter Quarter 2023

T HLTH 290 A/ The Body’s Responses to Illness& Injury: Ecological Perspectives (5cr) (NW)

Introduces selected human biological responses including the stress response, the immune response, and the pain response.  Explores individual and environmental factors known to affect the way these biological responses are manifested.

Winter Quarter 2022

T HLTH 290 A/ The Body’s Responses to Illness& Injury: Ecological Perspectives (5cr) (NW)

Introduces selected human biological responses including the stress response, the immune response, and the pain response.  Explores individual and environmental factors known to affect the way these biological responses are manifested.

Winter Quarter 2021

T HLTH 290 A/ The Body’s Responses to Illness& Injury: Ecological Perspectives (5cr) (NW)

Introduces selected human biological responses including the stress response, the immune response, and the pain response.  Explores individual and environmental factors known to affect the way these biological responses are manifested.

Winter Quarter 2020

T HLTH 290 A/ The Body’s Responses to Illness& Injury: Ecological Perspectives (5cr) (NW)

Introduces selected human biological responses including the stress response, the immune response, and the pain response.  Explores individual and environmental factors known to affect the way these biological responses are manifested.

Spring Quarter 2019

T HLTH 290 A/ The Body’s Responses to Illness& Injury: Ecological Perspectives (5cr) (NW)

Introduces selected human biological responses including the stress response, the immune response, and the pain response.  Explores individual and environmental factors known to affect the way these biological responses are manifested.

T HLTH 490 B/ Applying Positive Psychology to Health Promotion (5cr) (I&S)

Evaluates role of positive emotions and behaviors in promoting health and wellness. Examines theories of emotions, strategies to measure positive emotions, relationship between positive emotions and health outcome, and role of culture and positive emotions in well-being. Examines forgiveness, mindfulness, optimism, gratitude, happiness, and compassion.

Autumn Quarter 2018

T NURS 590 A/ Advanced Topics in Healthcare Leadership

Provides an in-depth exploration of essential skills for healthcare leaders including communication, negotiation, managing disruptive behaviors, providing informal and formal feedback, and managing the psychology of change. Explores how self-awareness and emotional intelligence can enhance leadership capabilities.

Spring Quarter 2018

T HLTH 490 A/ Documentary Photography and Health: Activist Photography and the Social Determinants of Health (5 cr) (VLPA)

Describes the ways documentary photography depicts conditions in which people live, work, and play.  Examines how the aesthetic experience of documentary photography motivates activism for improving human health.

Winter Quarter 2018

T HLTH 490 A/ How Film and Media Shape the Public Perceptions of Addiction, Mental Health and Mental Illness (5 cr) (VLPA)

Examines how addiction, mental illness and mental health are represented in films, TV and media in the context of social issues. Explore current research to critique these portrayals of myths, policies, and institutions. Explore how the cinematic elements shape the public perceptions.

Summer Quarter 2016

T HLTH 290 A/ Special Topics in Health: An Intro to the Body's Responses to Illness and Injury (5 cr) (NW)

Provides an introduction to common medical terminology and topics in human anatomy and physiology. The course covers how the body responds to injury and illness including behaviors we can observe, and recovery.

Spring Quarter 2016

T HLTH 490 A/ Where Happiness Lies: The Art and Science of Positive Psychology (5 cr) (I&S)

Examines topics in positive psychology including optimism, hope, and the good life; these topics will be analyzed using the lens of positive relationships, positive experiences, and positive institutions.

Winter Quarter 2016

T HLTH 490 A/ The Art of Aging as Explored through Literature and the Visual Arts (5 cr) (VLPA)

Explores the critical issues arising in aging: physical, emotional, and spiritual through the lens of literature and the visual arts. This exploration will be framed by a narrative approach that allows for the understanding of our lives as a developing story that is reflected in and understood through the arts. 

Spring Quarter 2015

T NURS 590 / Healthcare Informatics (3 cr)

Introduces core concepts and practices of informatics technologies applied to healthcare organizations, clinical research, and public health. Includes terminologies, data standards, evidence-based medicine, decision support systems, and legal issues with use of health data. Introduces the acquisition, use, storage, and analysis of information in the healthcare domain. Applies analytical approaches to solve problems of patient care and safety within the environment of healthcare organizations. [Course now taught as T NURS 554]

Summer Quarter 2014

T NURS 590 / Organizational and Systems Leadership (3 cr)

Demonstrates how leadership and decision making skills influence healthcare. Focuses on understanding influence of changes strategies, systems theory, and economic factors on complex healthcare environments. Describes role of nurses in designing and implementing new models of care and participating in interprofessional teams. [Course now taught as T NURS 552]

Spring Quarter 2014

THLTH 490 / Healthcare Informatics I: Fundamentals (5 cr)

Introduces core concepts and practices of health informatics, technologies applied to healthcare, research, public health. Includes terminologies, data standards, evidence- based medicine, and decision support systems. Considers the viewpoints of information technology from medicine, computer science, nursing, public health, patients/consumers, exploring opportunities and emerging trends in the field. [Course now taught as THLEAD 405]

T NURS 590 / Nursing Health Assessment (3 cr)

This course provides a holistic framework for systematic collection, organization and communication of health related data that reflects the health status of individuals throughout the lifespan. Physical examination skills, specific to each population, will be addressed. Focus on analysis of developmental, psychosocial, and cultural factors will be explored. In addition, selected pathophysiologic and psychopharmacology concepts will be emphasize specific to clinical populations. [Course now taught as T NURS 558]

Autumn Quarter 2013

THLTH 490 / Special Topics in Health:  Integrative Wellness Coaching (5 cr)

Examines integrative wellness coaching, a collaborative partnership between the professional coach and the client/healing partner to assist the client to identify their own health goals and how to best achieve them.  Prevention across the wellness-illness continuum, healthy lifestyle and integrative modalities merge with coaching individuals/groups to support optimal health.  [Course now taught as THLTH 465]

Spring Quarter 2013

THLTH 490 / Special Topics in Health:  Introduction to Healthcare (5 cr)

Introduction to healthcare systems. Course will emphasize the evolution of the US healthcare system and analyze current dilemmas including financing, access, quality, safety, technology and health policy.

Winter Quarter 2013

T NURS 590 / Special Topics:  Quality and Safety in Health Care Settings*

Examines the various strategies used in health care settings to improve quality and safety.  Emphasis is on the identification, implementation, and evaluation of quality and safety initiatives that impact healthcare outcomes.  Prerequisite: Graduate standing or permission of instructor.  [Course now taught as T NURS 556]

Autumn Quarter 2012

T HLTH 490 / Special Topics in Health Management, a management class with a strong focus on the human side of management. Content will include employee conflict resolution, just culture, manager influence to support change management, recruitment and retention, employee evaluation, discipline and satisfaction. This is a hybrid class that will meet both electronically and in a classroom. Students will participate in the presentation of course topics through group work. 

Summer Quarter 2012

T HLTH 490 /HIV- AIDS: Global & National Issues (5 cr)

Examines historical and contemporary issues related to HIV/AIDS form local, national, and global perspectives. Focuses on HIV/AIDS among vulnerable populations worldwide, prevention efforts, the history of the pandemic, treatment protocols and advances, and psychological impacts on both infected and affected individuals. [Course now taught as T HLTH 355]

Spring Quarter 2012

T HLTH 490 / Knowing Health and Illness through the Arts (VLPA), a class that will offer an opportunity to analyze how life, vitality, health and wellness, as well as illness suffering and death are depicted in literature, poetry, music, photography, and sculpture. The power of the aesthetic experience of the arts will facilitate the cultural understandings of health and illness. [Course now taught as T HLTH 455]