Tobacco Courses

Faculty at numerous universities across the country have developed a variety of tobacco and nicotine related courses designed to further the understanding of this complex subject for students. As a public service, many of these faculty have agreed to post their course syllabi on this website for the use of potential students and faculty colleagues.

Courses are ordered by university and then by instructor's last name. To view the course syllabus, click on the course name. Please note that the information contained on this site is protected by copyright, and may not be copied without the express permission of the posting instructor.

Boston University

Columbia University

    TOBACCO AND PUBLIC HEALTH: POLITICS, POLICY AND PROGRAM APPROACHES TO THE GLOBAL EPIDEMIC
    Course Number: SOSC P8752
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2004

    Tobacco control is a model for interdisciplinary study in public health and effective methods for preventing death and disability through multilevel interventions, including policy regulation. Tobacco remains the number one preventable cause of death in the United States and in most developed countries. This course will explicitly contrast the strategies employed by the tobacco industry with those used by public health professionals. Through the lens of tobacco control, we will critically analyze public health approaches such as counter-advertising, media promotion, research & information dissemination, policy development, and program implementation & evaluation. This course will explore multiple dimensions of tobacco use: health, social, and economic implications as well as the ethical, legal and scientific debates that have accompanied the development of tobacco control policies in the U.S and abroad. In addition to giving students a thorough grounding in the area of tobacco and health, the course will provide students with an excellent basis for analyzing the various dimensions of other major public health problems and producing effective multi-level interventions.

    Instructor:  Donna Shelley, PhD
      drs26@columbia.edu
     

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Harvard

    APPROACHES TO INTERNATIONAL TOBACCO CONTROL
    Course Number: SHH 249
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2004

    Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable mortality and morbidity in the world, responsible for an estimated 420,000 deaths per year in the U.S. alone. This course is designed to equip students with core knowledge on issues related to tobacco control - including the epidemiology of tobacco use; the economics of the transnational tobacco industry; strategies to curb the marketing and sales of cigarettes at local, state, national, and international levels and the ability to manage large scale tobacco programs.

    Instructor:  Gregory Connolly, D.M.D., M.P.H.
      gconnoll@hsph.harvard.edu
     

    INTERNATIONAL TOBACCO CONTROL
    Course Number: Fall 2
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2003

    Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable mortality and morbidity in the world, responsible for an estimated 420,000 deaths per year in the U.S. alone. This course is designed to equip students with core knowledge on issues related to tobacco control - including the epidemiology of tobacco use; the economics of the transnational tobacco industry; and strategies to curb the marketing and sales of cigarettes at local, state, national, and international levels.

    Instructor:  Ichiro Kawachi, M.D., Ph.D.
      Ichiro.Kawachi@channing.harvard.edu
     

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Harvard Seminar

Johns Hopkins

    TOBACCO CONTROL: NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL APPROACHES
    Course Number: 340.615.11
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2004

    This course provides an introduction to global tobacco control. It presents the health and economic burden of tobacco use worldwide and highlights practical approaches to tobacco prevention, control, surveillance and evaluation using a systematic approach based on the main actors involved in tobacco control. Through lectures, problem-solving exercises and discussion, the course examines transnational tobacco control issues, including: the interpretation and packaging of epidemiologic evidence for policy makers, the determinants of tobacco addiction, the economics of global tobacco control, tobacco industry strategies, legal foundations for regulation, and basic surveillance and evaluation methods. Upon completion of this course students should: •Understand the scope of the health and economic burden of tobacco use worldwide; •Be able to interpret and present study data on smoking and disease; •Understand the legal foundation for tobacco control regulations; •Be able to describe the components of a comprehensive tobacco control strategy; •Be able to critically evaluate tobacco control intervention strategies; •Know how to access information resources on tobacco and health.

    Instructor:  Jonathan Samet, MD, MS and Frances Stillman, EdD, EdM
      jsamet@jhsph.edu
     

    ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, ILLICIT DRUGS AND PUBLIC HEALTH
    Course Number: 330.644
    Category: Tobacco as a Component
    Last Taught: 2004

    The goal is for participants to gain a greater understanding of drugs (including alcohol and tobacco), their effects and consequences. Predominant themes that lead to achieving this goal are keen listening, teamwork, and self-reflection of your own attitudes towards drug use and dependence. This course is designed to help participants understand the public health impact of drug involvement and introduce them to several research studies in a field that encompasses a multidisciplinary approach to understanding the complexities of being involved with drugs. A dynamic learning experience will be created via presentations by guest lecturers, student presentations, discussions, weekly exercises, and drug information summaries produced by the participants.

    Instructor:  Carla Storr, ScD
      cstorr@jhsph.edu
      410-955-0422

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Roswell Park Cancer Institute

    TOBACCO CONTROL
    Course Number: PTR/SPM 528
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2005

    Tobacco use, mostly in the form of cigarettes, will cause more than 400,000 deaths in the United States this year. More than 8 million Americans currently experience one or more serious illnesses (e.g., heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, other cancers, chronic respiratory diseases) caused by their smoking. Worldwide, about 4 million people die every year from tobacco-attributable diseases. If current trends continue, approximately 10 million tobaccoattributable deaths will occur worldwide by 2030, with most occurring in developing countries. Tobacco control has emerged as a significant component of public health practice, having already postponed millions of deaths. The potential is far greater. There is an urgent need for worldwide implementation of effective tobacco-control strategies that will prevent initiation, promote quitting, and protect nonsmokers. The science base of tobacco control has expanded considerably in the past decade. This course is designed to teach students about that research so that they will have a clear understanding of the patterns, determinants, and consequences of tobacco use; as well as of techniques available to reduce tobacco use and tobacco-attributable morbidity and mortality.

    Instructor:  Gary Giovino, PhD, MS
      Gary.Giovino@RoswellPark.org
      716-845-4402

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Texas A&M

    SEMINAR ON ISSUES IN TOBACCO CONTROL
    Course Number: PHSB 689
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2001

    This course is designed to provide students with an overview of current issues related to tobacco use and control. At the conclusion of the course, students will have a better understanding of the history, behavioral and biological aspects, marketing and policy issues related to tobacco as a public health issue in the United States today.

    Instructor:  Brian Colwell, Ph.D., CHES
      colwell@medicine.tamu.edu
      (979)845-2387

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UCSF School of Nursing

    TOBACCO CONTROL POLICY ISSUES
    Course Number: S235
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2005

    This course will focus on developing students' understanding of the key issues in and evolution of tobacco control policies in the United States and internationally. Lectures and readings in the history of tobacco control will prepare students to engage in weekly discussion forums.

    Instructor:  Ruth E. Malone, RN, PhD, FAAN
      rmalone@itsa.ucsf.edu
      415-476-3273

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University of Kansas Medical Center

    PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACHES:ASSESSMENT, ASSURANCE, POLICY DEVELOPMENT and POLITICS OF TOBACCO: LEGISLATION, REGULATION and LITIGATION
    Course Number: PRVM 806
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2004

    *Understanding the spectrum of stratgies for addressing tobacco use in the US *Assess how the core functions of public health have supported tobacco control *Compare the similarities and differences between two modesl for evidence-based comprehensive tobacco control *Understand the history of policy efforts to curb tobacco *Describe how legislation, regulation, and litigation have been used to implement tobacco control strategies (taxation, marketing constraints, federal regulation, checks on youth access, curbs on secondhand smoke, litigation, global regulation) *Consider how best to support local ordinances,state and federal legislation *Examine the costs and potential side-effects of litigation as a public health strategy

    Instructor:  Kimber Richter, PhD, MPH
      krichter@kumc.edu
      913- 588-2718

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University of Michigan

    TOBACCO: FROM SEEDLING TO SOCIAL POLICY
    Course Number: HMP 618
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2007

    Tobacco is the leading cause of preventable morbidity and avoidable premature mortality in most of the developed countries of the world and is well on its way to attaining the same dubious distinction among the developing nations. This course is intended to thoroughly acquaint students with multiple dimensions of tobacco use, including its health, social, and economic implications, as well as a host of policy issues. The objective is to impart to students an appreciation of how analysis of history, epidemiology, health behavior, and policy can be integrated to provide a comprehensive knowledge base for understanding a major cause of disease and disability and determining how to reduce it. In this capacity, the expectation is that in addition to giving students a thorough grounding in the area of tobacco and health, the course should provide students with an excellent basis for analyzing the various dimensions of other major public health problems. HMP 618 is a seminar, not a lecture course. This means that the fundamental modus operandi will be active discussion and debate. Any student who is not willing to participate actively in classroom discussions should withdraw from the course. The success of the course depends on lively interaction among all participants and, indeed, individual student grades will rest heavily on such participation.

    Instructor:  Clifford Douglas
      cdoug@umich.edu
      (734) 936-0939

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University of Oklahoma College

    PUBLIC HEALTH STRATEGIES FOR TOBACCO CONTROL
    Course Number: CPH 7633
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2006

    This course provides an overview of the history, health effects, politics, and prevention of tobacco abuse. This interdisciplinary course is designed for MPH students who have completed the public health core courses and are prepared to examine tobacco abuse from all perspectives: epidemiological, psychosocial, political, economic and environmental. Through readings, presentations, case studies, and projects, students will explore the multidimensional aspects of tobacco abuse and their implications for public health

    Instructor:  Laura Beebe, Ph.D., Vicki Cleaver, Ed.D.
      laura-beebe@ouhsc.edu, Vicki-cleaver@ouhsc.edu
      (405)271-2229 ext 48061

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University of South Carolina

    TOBACCO PREVENTION AND CONTROL IN PUBLIC HEALTH
    Course Number: HPEB 542
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2005

    Knowledge and skills for effective tobacco prevention and control practice in public health. Topics addressed include: *Examining current trends in tobacco use. *Identifying beliefs and attitudes that shape existing tobacco policies. *Understanding how different beliefs about tobacco probelms influence policies. *Describing in depth, factors that shape specific tobacco policies and their impact on reaching public health objectives. *Developing competence in selected areas of tobacco prevention and control and related publichealth policy issues. *Identifying effective, evidence-based approaches to tobacco prevention. *Understanding key issues in tobacco control policy in the United States.

    Instructor:  Deborah Parra-Medina, PhD
      dpmedina@gwm.sc.edu
      803-777-3892

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University of Sydney

    TOBACCO CONTROL IN THE 21st CENTURY
    Course Number: 1420
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2003

    The course has been designed for people wishing to gain state-of-the-art critical understanding of 20 major areas tobacco control. Each component of the course will be designed to provide students with: •a population health perspective on the tasks and strategies of tobacco control; •a guided and critical tour of the main policy debates in tobacco control; •the most frequently asked questions about each topic, linked to resource material that we believe best addresses these suggested directions for future exploration and learning.

    Instructor:  Simon Chapman, PhD
      simonc@health.usyd.edu.au
      +61(0)2 9351 5203

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University of Texas

    ADDICTIVE BEHAVIOR
    Course Number: PH 1410
    Category: Tobacco as a Component
    Last Taught: 2004

    Alcohol and other drug use is ubiquitous in the United States, and leads to significant personal, familial, social and economic consequences. Substance abuse is especially likely to affect members of disadvantaged groups, which further complicates their ability to cope with stressful life circumstances. Although substance use disorders are prevalent and identifiable, health care professionals often fail to identify and intervene with most of the substance-using clients they serve. As a result, many opportunities to reduce the suffering of these persons and their families are lost. This course provides public health students with a introduction to the epidemiology, etiology, prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug use disorders. One-half of this course will address alcohol abuse--the most costly and commonly encountered problem. Other substances will also be discussed, including cocaine, tobacco, marijuana, opioids, hallucinogens, ecstasy, inhalants, and caffeine. As a course with a behavioral science emphasis, practical application will be emphasized, both through classroom discussions and out-of-class assignments.

    Instructor:  Scott Walters, PhD
      scott.walters@utsouthwestern.edu
      214-648-1519

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University of Washington

    TOBACCO AND PUBLIC HEALTH: IMPACT, PREVENTION, POLICY AND SOCIAL CHANGE
    Course Number: HSERV 590E
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2005

    Tobacco and Public Health: Impact, Prevention, Policy and Social Change is a 10-week (10 session), 3- credit seminar course, that will meet Wednesdays, 1:30-4:20, Spring Quarter of 2005 (3/30/05-6/8/04). The course will utilize a multi-level approach to public health by providing a comprehensive overview of the health effects, history, marketing, politics, and control of tobacco use, combining medical, psychosocial, epidemiological and economic perspectives to give students a framework for understanding tobacco addiction and its prevention and treatment. The course content will be delivered primarily by local and national speakers who are experts in their field. This course will provide the foundation for 2 students to begin pursuing a public health career dedicated to diminishing the tremendous toll of tobacco use and addiction in our society through research, teaching and/or public health practice.

    Instructor:  Abigail Halperin, MD, MPH and Sara Savage, MPH
      abigail@u.washington.edu, sarasav@u.washington.edu
      206-616-4482

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Yale University

    TOBACCO: A GLOBAL HEALTH CHALLENGE
    Course Number: GHD-555B
    Category: Tobacco Focus
    Last Taught: 2004

    Course Objectives: After taking this seminar, students will be able to: •understand the global and historical context in which tobacco has become a staple of human consumption; •summarize the origins of estimated and projected mortality figures for the world's population now and in decades to come; •recognize the full range of diseases caused by and associated with tobacco, along with their physiological mechanisms; •know why and how the modern cigarette is one of the most engineered consumer products ever made, and the role of nicotine in addiction; •evaluate the means by which the tobacco industry encourages smoking, especially among the young, women, the poor, and citizens of developing countries; •understand the economics behind tobacco use, including agricultural economies dependent on tobacco; •define and debate the validity of harm reduction as a means to reduce the risks of tobacco-use; the reasons behind the failed promise of "light" and "mild" cigarettes; •understand the science and consequences of passive (second-hand) smoke and the political debates around bans on smoking in public places; •describe comprehensive tobacco control strategies and policies; understand the role of the World Health Organization and many Non-Governmental Organizations leading the fight against the tobacco industry and tobacco-use, including the newly-signed but not yet ratified international Framework Treaty on Tobacco Control (FCTC); •recognize the origin and value of heretofore secret tobacco industry documents now available on the Internet; •discuss cogently the economic and civil liberties issues surrounding tobacco control: free choice vs. government obligation to protect the public's health; free speech vs. bans on advertising; cost to society of smoking vs. cost to society of not-smoking.

    Instructor:  Norbert Hirschhorn, MD
      bertzpoet@yahoo.com.
     

    MEASUREMENT ISSUES IN CHRONIC DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY
    Course Number: CDE 523b
    Category: Tobacco as a Component
    Last Taught: 2005

    Measurement issues in chronic disease epidemiology including tobacco.

    Instructor:  Susan Mayne, PhD
      Susan.Mayne@Yale.Edu
      860-785-6274

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 Phone: 734-936-0939 ~ Fax: 734-764-4338 Copyright 2004 University of Michigan